Nippon Paint Marine Showcases Coating Solutions Results Aboard AIDAdiva

Nippon Paint Marine Showcases Coating Solutions Results Aboard AIDAdiva

Nippon Paint Marine announced that its application of AQUATERRAS, an advanced polymer technology, on the AIDAdiva has resulted in lower costs and downtime, as the need for planned in-water hull cleaning was removed for over three years.

John Drew, director at Nippon Paint Marine, Europe, told Cruise Industry News the patented structure, paired with a hydrolysis-driven self-polishing mechanism, optimises hull smoothness over time and delivers a reduction in fuel consumption and greenhouse gas emissions.

“Our team of experts has a detailed understanding of the challenging itineraries that cruise vessels must operate under, often spending extended periods within regions in which the impact of biofouling is keenly felt, as well as managing stakeholder pressure from consumers where sustainability is a priority,” Drew explained.

Meeting the Industry Where It Is

According to Drew, the industry is adapting to an increasingly complex regulatory environment designed to support the reduction of carbon emissions and increase sustainability.

“Our clients are focused on balancing the need to mitigate emissions from their fleets through enhanced operational efficiencies and the integration of clean technologies while remaining commercially competitive,” he added.

To meet these requirements, the company launched AQUATERRAS, which combines hydrophilic and hydrophobic micro-domains to resist biological adhesion.

Drew added that, while delivering a speed loss of 1 per cent over 60 months, compared to the 5.9 per cent industry average, the attributes enable vessels to generate up to 14.7 per cent in fuel savings and associated emissions reduction.

“Hull performance directly affects both operating costs and environmental impact, so maintaining a clean hull across such varied conditions is critical,” he said. “AQUATERRAS has demonstrated its ability to meet these challenges.”

“For example, following its application to the AIDAdiva in 2022, the vessel operated for three years without the need for any in-water hull cleaning, maintaining a fouling-free vertical bottom despite extensive service in high-biofouling regions such as the Caribbean and Mediterranean,” he explained.

The performance supported sustained fuel efficiency gains and eliminated the environmental risks associated with traditional coatings due to its biocide-free characteristics.

Drew added that the solution, for both drydock and newbuild projects, does not require specialist application equipment and can be applied at any yard.

The Focus for the Future

“Looking ahead, innovation in marine coatings will be shaped by three priorities: advancing sustainability, maximising operational efficiency and ensuring compliance with increasingly stringent and fragmented environmental regulations,” said Drew.

“We expect to see a continued shift away from biocidal systems toward alternative technologies that deliver long-term fouling prevention without environmental trade-offs, as well as a focus on developing low-volatile organic compounds solutions that are designed to minimise the release of harmful organic chemicals into the surrounding environment during application and drying,” he added.

Nippon Paint Marine will invest heavily into research and development leading into 2026, as innovation means looking well beyond the next 12 months, Drew said. Innovations and materials need to be tested over a number of years in varied operating conditions before being launched to market.

Collaboration is the Way Forward

“Working closely with shipowners, operators, shipyards, and research partners is imperative for us, as it ensures our innovations align with the operational challenges our customers face,” Drew said.

“Through working together, we can help our partners meet their various commercial and environmental targets, today and in the long term. This means continuing to innovate while ensuring our products support the highest levels of performance, are cost-effective and support ongoing regulatory compliance.”

 

MSC Cruises to Reduce Fleetwide Emissions by Up to 15%

MSC Cruises to Reduce Fleetwide Emissions by Up to 15%

MSC Magnifica is anchored in the Firth of Forth just under the Forth Railway Bridge for more Images of Magnifica follow the link.https://flic.kr/s/aHsm7BUfg3

MSC Cruises is set to reduce fleetwide emissions by up to 15 per cent in 2026 by implementing a new itinerary planning optimization tool, OptiCruise, according to a press release.

Developed in collaboration with OPTIMeasy, the new mathematical model reportedly analyzes various factors influencing the planning of MSC Cruises’ itineraries. The goal is to achieve maximum efficiency while maintaining or enhancing guest satisfaction, the company stated.

The MSC Bellissima was selected to test the prototype technology over 12 months while sailing between 17 ports in the Mediterranean Sea.

Michele Francioni, chief energy transition officer at MSC Cruises, said: “We have identified and developed this new technology to optimize the decision-making process of itinerary planning to further reduce emissions across our fleet from 2026.  

 “The OPTIMeasy team calculates that the average fuel savings made, and emissions reduced by using OptiCruise are in the range of 10-15 per cent which is a significant step forward in our ambition to achieve our net zero greenhouse gas emissions target by 2050 for our marine operations.” 

According to the company, voyage planning in the global cruise industry has traditionally focused on the appeal of ship destinations to potential holidaymakers.

OptiCruise aims to expand this approach by incorporating a range of factors that affect itinerary efficiency. These include the sequencing of port calls, departure and arrival times, a ship’s speed, destination attractiveness, shore excursions and operational costs such as fuel, port charges and food provisions.

The tool’s algorithms analyze this data to identify optimized itineraries that maintain guest appeal while enhancing energy efficiency.

MSC Cruises’ strategy to reach net zero greenhouse gas (GHG) emissions by 2050 for its marine operations centres on three key areas: ship and engine technology, operational efficiency and renewable fuels. OptiCruise falls under the operational efficiency category, aiming to enhance energy consumption through increased digitalization.

OptiCruise was developed under the European Union’s Project CHEK, which explores low-carbon shipping technologies and innovative designs.

Hurtigruten Receives Best ESG Ranking of a Cruise Company

Hurtigruten Receives Best ESG Ranking of a Cruise Company

Hurtigruten Group has received an industry-leading ESG Risk Rating of 19.7 (Low) following an assessment by Morningstar Sustainalytics, an ESG research, ratings and data firm, according to a statement.

With ratings categorized across five risk levels, Hurtigruten Group is the only cruise company to be awarded a Low ESG Risk Rating and ranks fourth (out of 127 companies) in the “Travel, Lodging and Amusement” subindustry category.

“This rating is a result of our company-wide focus on emissions, nature, community and people,” said Daniel Skjeldam, CEO of Hurtigruten Group. “We have made significant strides over the past year, investing 66 million euros in emissions reduction. Our pioneering Green Bond, issued in 2022, has enabled us to finance ongoing environmental upgrades, including converting our fifth battery hybrid-powered ship. Simultaneously, we strengthened governance with executive compensation linked to ESG targets, a new whistleblower policy and improved supply chain control, emphasizing local procurement.”

In its latest ESG rating report, Morningstar Sustainalytics stated: “The company [Hurtigruten Group] is at low risk of experiencing material financial impacts from ESG factors, due to its medium exposure and strong management of material ESG issues. The company is not publicly held, which reduces its corporate governance risk compared to its peers. Although the company has a moderate level of controversies, its favourable risk assessment is primarily due to its above-average policies and programmes.”

“This rating is a quantitative method to assess our ESG efforts and a valuable tool to scrutinize how we execute on our ESG strategy through programmes and policies across the entire business,” explained Skjeldam. Hurtigruten Group – consisting of Hurtigruten Norway, Hurtigruten Expeditions, and Hurtigruten Svalbard – seeks to change the industry’s approach to sustainability. Hurtigruten Group was the first cruise line to ban heavy fuel oil (2009) and single-use plastics (2018). In 2019, Hurtigruten Expeditions added the world’s first battery hybrid-powered cruise ship and has since added two.

In 2022, Hurtigruten Norway converted its first battery hybrid-powered ship, with one more joining the fleet in 2023 and a third planned for 2024. The conversions are part of a 100-million-euro green upgrade that will reduce CO2 and NOx emissions by 25% and 80%, concurrently. Moreover, this June, Hurtigruten Norway’s first-of-kind Sea Zero initiative revealed early concept plans for the world’s most energy-efficient cruise ship.

“In addition, our Svalbard operations have made considerable progress in reducing their impact, deploying two electric tour boats and eight electric snowmobiles. We are working towards becoming cleaner, greener, and quieter,” added Skjeldam.

MSC cruise ship demonstrates fuel-cell technology

MSC Cruises’ latest ship, MSC World Europa, demonstrates the company’s strategy to decarbonise by cutting greenhouse gas emissions.

This ship was delivered from the Chantiers de l’Atlantique’s shipyard in Saint-Nazaire 24 October, with the latest power and propulsion technology on board.

MSC Cruise Management (UK) head of electrical engineering Steven Frey said this ship is powered by LNG and has a solid oxide fuel cell (SOFC) to run as a pilot project.

He told delegates at Riviera Maritime Media’s annual Maritime Hybrid, Electric & Hydrogen Fuel Cells Conference in Bergen, Norway, 27 October, the importance of testing and investing in technology to cut carbon emissions.

“We are working to get to zero emissions from multiple fronts, including digitalisation, workshops and partnerships, hybrid propulsion solutions, shore charging and new technologies, such as SOFC,” said Mr Frey. “We are starting a demonstration of a 500-kW SOFC on a ship, and we want to scale this technology up to 20 MW.”

Using power from shore during port stays is an important method for MSC to reduce ship emissions.

“All of our newbuilds are ready for shore power and we are retrofitting the existing fleet,” said Mr Frey. "Around 50% of our ships will be ready by 2023 and 65% by the end of next year. We have also signed a memorandum of understanding with Cruise Baltic to use shore power in 32 ports from 2024 when it is available.”

He said smaller cruise vessels need around 4.5 MW of power and MSC’s largest ships to need more than 10 MW from shore power to shut down engines.

Mr Frey said a combination of shore power and technology to reduce energy consumption and fuel usage is needed to cut cruise ship emissions.

“We are looking at ways to decarbonise by reducing energy consumption on the ships, by adding LED lighting and heat recovery, reducing hotel loads and using alternative fuels,” he said.

“We have a dedicated department dealing with energy efficiency and developing solutions for tracking data from our vessels, so we have a clear view of consumption,” Mr Frey added.

On the subject of fuels, MSC has already turned to LNG to cut pollutants and will consider other sources of energy.

“We are considering hydrogen as a fuel of the future and are using LNG now. MSC World Europa uses LNG fuel and has the SOFC pilot project. Other ships could run a fuel cell and LNG,” said Mr Frey.

World’s Largest Cruise Company Turns to Air Bubbles to Help Reduce Emissions

The world’s largest cruise shipping company has announced plans to install air lubrication technology on at least 20% of its fleet.

Carnival Corporation says the Air Lubrication Systems (ALS), which are already in use aboard four ships, will be added to five more ships this year with plans to install the technology on at least 10 more ships across a majority of its brands through 2027.

The hull drag-reducing technology is expected to reduce fuel consumption and carbon emissions by about 5% per ship, according to the company.

ALS technology, which first saw service within the Carnival Corporation fleet in 2016 with the introduction of AIDAprima, generates a cushion of air bubbles to lubricate the flat bottom of a ship’s hull, reducing friction between the ship and surrounding water, resulting in savings in energy and fuel consumption across a wide speed range.

Carnival Corporation is currently installing the Silverstream® System ALS on five more ships, including two ships in 2022 for its Princess Cruises and P&O Cruises (UK) brands. In addition, the company is planning at least 10 more installations for existing and newbuild ships across more than half of its cruise line brands, and it expects continued expansion of the ALS program. The expansion plans build on the success of four systems currently operating on ships from its AIDA Cruises and Princess Cruises brands.

“The installation of air lubrication technology is another example of our ongoing efforts to drive energy efficiency and reduce fuel consumption and emissions throughout our fleet,” said Bill Burke, chief maritime officer for Carnival Corporation. “We look forward to expanding the ALS program and furthering our long-term sustainability strategy to continually invest in a broad range of energy reduction initiatives, which has included over $350 million invested in energy efficiency improvements since 2016.”

Carnival Corporation has committed to reducing carbon emission intensity by 20% from its 2019 baseline by 2030 and has set an aspiration to achieve net carbon-neutral ship operations by 2050.

Carnival Corporation Driving Technical Innovation

“Where there are particularly large refits or complex ones, we provide project management resources to support the brands,” said Chris Millman, vice president of corporate marine technology at Carnival Corporation.

Perhaps the biggest project coming up for Carnival Corporation is a battery system retrofit for AIDA Cruises, as the German brand will get a 10MW battery installation with the goal to manoeuvre into port, hook up to shore power, and then sail out of port, all with zero emissions.

“The impact of that will be zero emissions for a port call, which is something we are looking at,” Millman said, adding that a fuel cell installation was also happening in the near future on an AIDA vessel.

Long-term planning is centred around fewer emissions with the eventual goal of finding the zero-emissions fuel of the future.

Varying Projects

Many of the ideas and project topics come from the brands themselves, noted Mike Kaczmarek, vice president of corporate shipbuilding.

Thus, those projects can turn into company-wide refit projects, energy-efficiency initiatives and help lend resources and support to prototype future technologies.

“We have been running a technical prototype initiative whereby we are assessing the impact of different technologies on the ships,” said Millman, pointing to variable speed pumps, fan controllers, different hull coatings and LED lights.          

"We’ve developed a recommended package for all our ships … it brings all the ships into line with technologies we’ve identified as being effective at improving energy efficiency and waste management,” he said.

After seeing the results of an air lubrication system on a pair of newbuilds, that technology has now been retrofitted to a handful of existing ships, where Carnival first equipped the ships with the fastest itineraries in the fleet that would benefit the most.

Hull Coating

"“Following the pause period, and with ships returning to service, they needed hull cleaning and we needed to understand which ones needed it the most,” Millman explained.

New is a remote hull cleaning drone that also collects all the fouling of the hull, alleviating concerns from port authorities and letting Carnival evaluate what was on the hull.

With no shortage of hull coating options available, different water temperatures ship speeds and itinerary patterns, the company is constantly evaluating new hull paint.

Carnival ships are sailing globally with different hull coatings, and test patches of new coatings.

“In one case we coated a whole hull with completely new paint. It has proven to be very successful,” Millman said. “We haven’t seen it through to the end of five years yet but we are moving to do another couple of trials.”

Support

Supporting initiatives include a host of subject matter experts at the corporate level – whether it’s a hydrodynamics wizard, a waste heat genius or other top minds in specific fields.

“The background assistance is there for the brands,” said Millman.

Getting pitched all the time with the latest emissions-saving gadgets, the corporate technology team goes through potential projects, brings in subject matter help and then evaluates proposals.

“We would then prioritize what to trial depending on what we feel would bring the best ROI on improving energy efficiency,” Millman said. “Then run the trial and report back.”

Company-wide, a technical team gathers twice a year for two to three days, going through all the projects, providing updates and making decisions on where the future focus should go.

“The biggest (future) tech initiative will be on alternative fuels … that is a major way to decarbonization.”

Excerpt from Cruise Industry News Quarterly Magazine: Winter 2021-2022 

Special Report: Cruise ships face emissions challenge

 

 
Shipping lines must comply with new global emissions controls. Ian Taylor reports

All ships over 400 tonnes became subject to International Maritime Organisation (IMO) limits on sulphur emissions from January 1.

These cut the permissible sulphur content in ship fuel outside designated emission control areas (ECAs) from 3.5% to 0.5%. The limit remains 0.1% in these control areas – the Baltic Sea, the North Sea, North American coastal waters and the ‘US Caribbean’.

The cruise industry accounts for just 1% of the shipping and 2% of global outbound travel but claims to be at the forefront of cutting emissions.

However, the shipping sector has moved painfully slowly. The January limit on emissions of sulphur oxide – a toxic by-product of heavy fuel oil – was agreed in 2008.

Cruise association Clia announced last year that its members were “well on the way to full compliance”.

However, the IMO warned of “price volatility” until “supply and demand find a balance” with the marine oil required to replace the heavy fuel oil commonly used by ships costing up to 50% more.

There are concerns about supply and about inconsistent enforcement, given the IMO limit is policed by ports and ‘flag states’ – the countries where ships are registered.

Broadly, there are three ways of complying – switching to marine fuel oil, investing in liquified natural gas (LNG) technology or installing exhaust cleaning systems.

There are serious issues with all three.

Switching to marine diesel cuts the sulphur content but the fuel still contains many times more pollutants than vehicle diesel. Ships must also beware of mixing fuels which can be unsafe.

Using LNG cuts sulphur emissions almost entirely and nitrogen oxide by 85%. Clia suggests 25 ships or about 12% of the global total could be using LNG by 2025. But the primary component of LNG is methane, an accelerant of global warming.

There are also limits to LNG infrastructure, with fuelling stations only slowly being established in Europe.

Exhaust cleaning systems or scrubbers enable ships to continue using heavy fuel oil by removing the sulphur – dissolving it in seawater which is returned to the ocean as sulphuric acid or held on the ship to be disposed of on land.

Royal Caribbean Cruises vice-chairman Adam Goldstein has said: “You inject tremendous amounts of water into the exhaust and it takes the sulphur away. That is our principal strategy.”

Clia reported in September that more than 68% of global capacity would utilise scrubbers. But China, Hong Kong, Singapore and some Caribbean islands have banned the release of water from scrubbers and there is a call for a worldwide ban.

Cruise lines also try to cut emissions in port by using shore-side power. But only 16 ports offer this – and only three outside North America.

Shipping sector leaders agreed in December to establish a $5 billion fund for research and development into cutting emissions, with the aim of developing zero-carbon emission ships by the 2030s.

Companies would make a $2 contribution for every tonne of marine fuel they purchase from 2023 if governments back the proposal at a meeting in London in March.

Special Report: Cruise ships face emissions challenge

Special Report: Cruise ships face emissions challenge

 

 
Shipping lines must comply with new global emissions controls. Ian Taylor reports

All ships over 400 tonnes became subject to International Maritime Organisation (IMO) limits on sulphur emissions from January 1.

These cut the permissible sulphur content in ship fuel outside designated emission control areas (ECAs) from 3.5% to 0.5%. The limit remains 0.1% in these control areas – the Baltic Sea, the North Sea, North American coastal waters and the ‘US Caribbean’.

The cruise industry accounts for just 1% of the shipping and 2% of global outbound travel but claims to be at the forefront of cutting emissions.

However, the shipping sector has moved painfully slowly. The January limit on emissions of sulphur oxide – a toxic by-product of heavy fuel oil – was agreed in 2008.

Cruise association Clia announced last year that its members were “well on the way to full compliance”.

However, the IMO warned of “price volatility” until “supply and demand find a balance” with the marine oil required to replace the heavy fuel oil commonly used by ships costing up to 50% more.

There are concerns about supply and about inconsistent enforcement, given the IMO limit is policed by ports and ‘flag states’ – the countries where ships are registered.

Broadly, there are three ways of complying – switching to marine fuel oil, investing in liquified natural gas (LNG) technology or installing exhaust cleaning systems.

There are serious issues with all three.

Switching to marine diesel cuts the sulphur content but the fuel still contains many times more pollutants than vehicle diesel. Ships must also beware of mixing fuels which can be unsafe.

Using LNG cuts sulphur emissions almost entirely and nitrogen oxide by 85%. Clia suggests 25 ships or about 12% of the global total could be using LNG by 2025. But the primary component of LNG is methane, an accelerant of global warming.

There are also limits to LNG infrastructure, with fuelling stations only slowly being established in Europe.

Exhaust cleaning systems or scrubbers enable ships to continue using heavy fuel oil by removing the sulphur – dissolving it in seawater which is returned to the ocean as sulphuric acid or held on the ship to be disposed of on land.

Royal Caribbean Cruises vice-chairman Adam Goldstein has said: “You inject tremendous amounts of water into the exhaust and it takes the sulphur away. That is our principal strategy.”

Clia reported in September that more than 68% of global capacity would utilise scrubbers. But China, Hong Kong, Singapore and some Caribbean islands have banned the release of water from scrubbers and there is a call for a worldwide ban.

Cruise lines also try to cut emissions in port by using shore-side power. But only 16 ports offer this – and only three outside North America.

Shipping sector leaders agreed in December to establish a $5 billion fund for research and development into cutting emissions, with the aim of developing zero-carbon emission ships by the 2030s.

Companies would make a $2 contribution for every tonne of marine fuel they purchase from 2023 if governments back the proposal at a meeting in London in March.

Norway Expected to Step Up Fjord Emissions and Discharge Restrictions Sooner

Norway Expected to Step Up Fjord Emissions and Discharge Restrictions Sooner

While Norwegian authorities have previously announced that they will introduce zero emissions restrictions in their heritage fjords by 2025, the Norwegian Maritime Authority (NMA) is expected to introduce restrictions starting already next year (2019) and gradually step up the requirements.

In its publication, Navigare, the NMA states that its restrictions will cover air emissions as well as grey-and blackwater and scrubber water in the Geirangerfjord, Nærøyfjord and Aurlandsfjord.

It is currently legal to sail in the Geirangefjord with HFO without exhaust gas cleaning systems as the fjord is north of the North Sea Emission Control Area. The other two fjords are within the ECA.

The NMA will require exhaust gas cleaning systems or low-sulfur fuels such as MGO.

Another proposal, which is said to be circulating for review in Norway, is a speed restriction for all ships above 20,000 tons, which will result in reduced fuel consumption and reduced emissions.

The NMA is also proposing that ships of more than 2,500 tons and carrying more than 100 persons will not be allowed to discharge grey- or Blackwater or scrubber water in the fjords. Visible smoke emissions must meet transparency requirements.

The Navigare article states that the number of ships visiting these fjords in the future is expected to go down and that the oldest ships are expected to leave first.