Motivated by stricter environmental regulations, growing pressure to reduce greenhouse gas emissions, rising fuel costs and the availability of new energy sources, the shipping industry is now forced to consider alternative fuels and new technologies. Battery-ready vessels might be one of these alternatives.
There are a number of alternative fuels or energy carriers that can be used in shipping, all with different benefits and challenges. The fuel that a shipping company should choose for a specific vessel depends on a variety of factors, including ship type, operational profile and trading pattern.
A vessel ordered today will still be operating in the 2030s, in a world with unknown fuel availability, fuel prices and regulatory requirements. Making the wrong fuel choice today may have major implications for a ship’s commercial performance over the next decades, including the vessel’s tradability and second-hand value.
DNV GL offers services tailored to assist ship owners in their selection and implementation of technology. DNV GL has evaluated more than 20 different ‘LNG ready' cases, covering bulk carriers, chemical tankers, general cargo carriers, container vessels, fast ferries, gas carriers and a heavy lift vessel. DNV GL is now also using the same approach to evaluate whether vessels are ‘battery ready’. Six maritime technology qualification processes have been run or are currently in progress in DNV GL, most of them qualifying SOx scrubber systems installed by ship owners for compliance with upcoming MARPOL regulations.
Deciding which alternative fuel to choose is a complicated task for ship owners. By following a structured approach, ship owners can ensure that they select the most commercially attractive option for a vessel based on today’s knowledge.
Some 100 participants representing yards, charterers, ship owners, Norwegian authorities and equipment manufacturers attended a Maritime Advisory seminar on profitable environmental technologies held at Høvik this week.