Classification society DNV on Monday (18 November) said it signed a Memorandum of Understanding (MoU) with Singapore-headquartered engineering solutions provider Seatrium to cooperate on strategic activities and projects in the areas of engineering, technology and new product design.

Under the MoU, DNV will provide Seatrium with expert advice on market and regulatory trends, emerging technologies, and best practices for environmental, safety and quality standards, in the maritime and offshore sectors. Both parties will work closely on optimizing existing processes and improving efficiencies across newbuilding, conversion and retrofit projects. 

Collaboration opportunities with other organizations and institutes will also be explored to advance technologies that tackle key challenges in the marine and offshore sectors.

Additionally, the cooperation will leverage DNV and Seatrium’s combined capabilities to drive and support technological and digital advancements in the marine and offshore industries. Key focus areas include floating offshore wind turbines, hydrogen and ammonia production platforms, and next-generation Floating Production Storage and Offloading (FPSO) units. The collaboration will also draw on DNV’s expertise in the integration of advanced cyber security and digital solutions into Seatrium’s suite of digital services. 

Remi Eriksen, Group President and CEO of DNV, said: "This agreement with Seatrium marks an important step in building marine and offshore solutions for a more sustainable and resilient future. By combining our innovation and execution strengths into the decarbonization and digitalization space, we are well-positioned to deliver transformative solutions that can address challenges and opportunities across key industries."

Chris Ong, CEO of Seatrium, said: "At Seatrium, we firmly believe that innovation is the cornerstone of a sustainable future for the marine and offshore industry. Our collaboration with DNV signifies a pivotal leap forward in harnessing state-of-the-art technologies and engineering solutions that not only address today's energy challenges, but also lay a strong foundation for maritime decarbonization.”

“Leveraging our deep expertise in advanced engineering and project execution, Seatrium is committed to driving transformative change that enhances safety, quality and efficiency, as well as providing strategic stewardship towards a cleaner and greener energy future for our industry."

Cristina Saenz de Santa Maria, Regional Manager South East Asia, Pacific & India, Maritime at DNV, added: “We are excited to strengthen our long-standing collaboration with Seatrium to drive sustainable advancements in the marine and offshore sectors.”

“Enhancing process efficiencies and harnessing digitalization are key enablers of the energy transition. By working together with Seatrium we can help the industry meet the rapidly evolving environmental, technological and regulatory challenges in its journey towards a decarbonized future."

During the ceremony, DNV also awarded two Approval in Principle (AiP) certificates to Seatrium for two new floating offshore wind turbine designs, the FWSS (Floating Wind Semi-Submersible) and SWACH (Small Waterplane Area Cylindrical Hull). 

The FWSS design is a floating column foundation for 15MW wind turbines, optimized for efficient fabrication and cost-effectiveness, while the SWACH design features a cylindrical floating foundation for 15MW turbines, engineered for ease of fabrication and handling.

With the floating offshore wind market set for significant growth over the coming years, these innovative designs are important in offering new floating wind solutions that can contribute to the advancement of the energy transition. The AiPs were awarded based on DNV's recently updated DNV-RU-OU-0512 (Floating wind installations) offshore rules.

Photo credit: DNV
Published: 25 November, 2024 

Environmental issues and factors influencing the sustainability of tanker shipping as it steps up to play its full part in decarbonising the industry in decades to come were the dominant themes of The Maritime Standard Tanker Conference 2024, which took place on 7 November at The Atlantis, The Palm, Dubai. 

According to The Maritime Standard, the need for collaboration between stakeholders to achieve this objective was stressed by a number of speakers, as was the importance of harnessing new technology, including digitalisation and AI-based tools. 

The importance of engaging ships’ crew in the process of decarbonisation and ensuring they have the right skill sets to enable fleet owners and operators to deliver their objectives was also highlighted by several speakers during the event.

The 2024 TMS Tanker Conference, which featured a programme of expert presentations, lively panel discussions, and a number of interesting questions from the floor, was structured around the theme “Sustainable Tanker Shipping – Accelerating the Journey to Net Zero.” 

Opening the conference, TMS Editor, Clive Woodbridge, said: “The industry is facing its share of challenges as it seeks to decarbonise and move to net zero. The need to invest, not only in new environment friendly tonnage, but in retrofitting existing ships, is going to be a paramount concern, while there will also be renewed focus on improving operational efficiency, to reduce fuel consumption and hence cut emissions.”

The opening session, on “Sustainable Shipping Strategies – Assessing Optimum Solutions”, was preceded by a keynote speech from Capt. Mohamed Al Ali, Senior Vice President, ADNOC Logistics and Services. 

Stressing the need for aligning strategies with the imperative of sustainability, not just for industry stakeholders but for the communities it serves, he said: “As we stand at this crossroads, let us be reminded that the moment for bold action is upon us. It is said that fortune favours the brave. We say the brave make their own fortune.” 

Also providing a keynote address was Shahab al Jassmi, Senior Vice President, Ports and Terminals Commercial, DP World, who said the industry was entering a new era and that, “By leveraging our innovative minds and building strategic partnerships we can truly excel in delivering sustainability.”

Other speakers in this first session, which laid the foundations for the day-long discussions, included Captain Ammaar Al Shaiba, CEO, Maritime and Shipping Cluster, AD Ports Group; Captain Franck Kayser, Chief Operating Officer, Asyad Shipping Company; Nitin Mathur, Head of Commercial Maritime, Al Seer Marine; Richard De Vries, Head of Sales MEA & India, Lloyds Register; and Peter Sahlen, Alfa Laval Technologies AB.

Session 2, on “Driving Greater Operational Efficiency in Tanker Shipping,” was moderated by Ali Shehab, Global Director of Special Projects and Services, DNV, and featured a wide range of speakers from different industry backgrounds. 

These included: Ali Abouda, Group CFO, Gulf Navigation Holding; Capt. Amarjit Kauchhur, Vice President, Middle East/ Regional Director, International Registries (UK) Limited – Dubai Branch; Capt. Savraj Mehta, CCO, NorthStandard; Maria Kristina Javellana, General Manager – Head of Fleet, Hafnia Middle East; Katherine Yakunchenkova, Managing Director, Al Safina Security; Alessandra Burke, CEO, K2 Bunker Fuel Supply; Dipak Karki, Founder and Managing Director, DK2 Seaport; Capt. Onur Yildrim, Global Marine Manager, Advanced Polymer Coatings and Stam Achillas, Head of Business Development & Sales, 2-Stroke Fuel Conversions, Wärtsilä Services. 

The final session, on “Creating Robust Support Systems Infrastructure” ended the event on a high, with speakers from the worlds of ship finance, digitalisation, maritime law, classification, Sale & Purchase and surveying. 

Moderated by Tien Tai, a partner at HFW, the panel included Chris Peters, Senior Executive Officer, Montfort Capital; Mark Lakin, Partner, Stephenson Harwood; Jamil Al Ali, Middle East Regional Commercial & Business Development Director, Bureau Veritas Marine & Offshore; Khalil Rehman Aziz, Managing Director, MariApps Marine Solutions; Faidon Panagiotopoulos, Trader/Purchase Representative (Sale & Purchase), GMS; Nitin Mehta and Capt. Zarir Irani, Managing Director, Constellation Marine Services & Chairman Nautical Institute UAE branch.

Clive Woodbridge concluded: “This conference left no doubt that environmental issues are firmly established at the top of the corporate agendas of tanker shipping owners and operators. But there was an awareness that different segments of the business have to work together more effectively, and that, while technology is important, the human element is sometimes a part of the total picture that is sometimes given less priority than it needs to. This is an important learning point for the future and will be a key feature of our conference programme for 2025.”

Photo credit: The Maritime Standard
Published: 22 November, 2024

Danish shipping giant A.P. Moller - Maersk (Maersk) on Monday (18 November) said the conversion of container ship Maersk Halifax into a methanol dual-fuel vessel has been completed. 

The retrofit operation was conducted at the Zhoushan Xinya Shipyard in China over 88 days with completion at the end of October 2024.

“We are happy to announce that Maersk Halifax successfully has been retrofitted into a dual-fuel methanol vessel,” said Leonardo Sonzio, Head of Fleet Management and Technology at Maersk.

“Following the completion of the sea-trials, Maersk Halifax has returned to operation and is now servicing our customers on the Trans-Pacific trade.”

The engine conversion has been done by MAN Energy Solutions. Besides replacing machine parts and thereby making the engine able to operate on methanol, the retrofit operation at the yard has involved adding new fuel tanks, fuel preparation room and fuel supply system. 

The hull has also been expanded to accommodate the fuel tanks. With this change, the length of the ship was extended by 15 metres to 368 metres, increasing the capacity from around 15,000 to 15,690 TEU.

“Since we set the ambitious climate goal of reaching net zero emissions by 2040, we have explored the potential in retrofitting existing vessels with dual-fuel engines. In the coming year, we will take learnings from this first conversion of a large vessel,” said Sonzio.

“Retrofits of existing vessels can be an important alternative to newbuilds in our transition from fossil fuels to low-emission fuels.”

Maersk Halifax, which is one of 11 vessels in Maersk’s Hong Kong-class, departed anchorage at the yard on 4 November 2024.

Manifold Times previously reported Sinopec Zhejiang Zhoushan Petroleum successfully completed the largest single bunkering of methanol bunker fuel for ships in China. 

Sinopec conducted a truck-to-ship bunkering operation, delivering 937.68 metric tonnes (mt) of methanol bunker fuel to the large container vessel Maersk Halifax at Zhoushan Xinya Shipyard. 

Related: Sinopec successfully completes largest methanol bunkering operation in China

Photo credit: Maersk
Published: 19 November, 2024