News

The U.S. Environmental Protection Agency is publishing a proposed rule under the Vessel Incidental Discharge Act that would establish national standards of performance for marine pollution control devices for discharges incidental to the normal operation of primarily non-military and non-recreational vessels 79 feet in length and above into the waters of the United States or the waters of the contiguous zone. Albion Marine Solutions conducts ballast water sampling as per VGP requirements. Our team also conducts the equipment health checks and monitoring instrument calibration for BWTS and scrubbers. The proposed national standards of performance were developed in coordination with the U.S. Coast Guard and in consultation with interested Governors. Read more here

The environmental and opex benefits of energy storage are driving more North American owners to opt for all-electric propulsion for their coastal passenger vessels. Developments in battery technologies, energy management systems and shore power charging, however, are making ‘ditch the diesel’ decisions a lot easier in certain harbour and coastal vessel applications. That is the case for two new all-electric tour boats built for US-based Maid of the Mist, which sails scenic cruises to the base of Niagara Falls. Using the power of Niagara Falls itself to propel the vessels, the all-electric boats, James V. Glynn and Nikola Tesla, will recharge shoreside each time they dock to load and offload passengers. Recharging to 80% capacity takes about seven minutes, with all of the renewable electricity generated by the Falls – one of the largest sources of hydropower in North America. These true zero-emission passenger vessels – the first newbuilds of their kind in the US – are each powered by a pair of battery packs with a total of 316 kWh, split between two catamaran hulls. This creates two independent power systems providing full redundancy. Read More: Riviera News

Albion Marine Solutions team is currently performing an onsite supervision and assisting one of our major clients with a ballast water treatment retrofit in a Singapore shipyard. The project is going along smoothly, despite COVID-19 challenges and restrictions. The retrofit is moving forward and should be completed according to schedule

The global shipping industry is continuing to explore the news sources of fuel that will help it to reduce its environmental impact and meet the industry goals of reducing emissions. MSC Mediterranean Shipping Company is exploring the viability of hydrogen and fuels derived from it as a possible fuel source for the future for container shipping. While the efforts continue to develop hydrogen as a fuel source. MSC reports that it is increasingly pioneering the use of biofuels within its existing fleet. While actively exploring and trialing a range of alternative fuels and technologies, MSC is currently actively bunkering biofuels at scale. Fossil-sourced LNG remains a transitional option, while carbon capture and storage, if perfected for marine use, could be useful. More information: Maritime Executive