Cruise Sector To Drive Clean Tech Uptake As 2020 Deadline Looms
“Cruise operators want cost effective solutions that are easy to retrofit, simple to operate, deliver the efficiency benefits that are claimed, and do not take up a significant amount of space, which impacts revenue generation. The Silverstream™ System meets all these criteria while, demonstrating a clear return on investment. For this reason, we are seeing increased uptake from the cruise sector.” says Noah Silberschmidt, CEO.
Silverstream Technologies, the pioneer of air lubrication technology for the shipping industry, today stated that it is the cruise sector that is showing substantial appetite for its clean technology. This is driven by a commitment to corporate social responsibility (CSR), as well as impending changes to MARPOL Annex VI regulations where increases in the operational efficiency of vessels will be critical to reducing fuel burn and associated costs.
Silverstream already has a contract with Norwegian Cruise Line (NCL) and is in advanced discussions with a number of other cruise operators who are looking to implement the company’s ground-breaking air lubrication technology, the Silverstream™ System.
“Many cruise lines have already seen a rise in fuel costs due to the significant amount of time that they operate within the 0.1% ECA zones. These costs will only increase further when the global 0.5% limit for sulphur in fuel comes into force in 2020, which is the anticipated date of implementation for the regulation”, Silberschmidt continued.
“In conjunction with the growing commitment to sustainability, given the consumer-facing nature of the sector, we are seeing considerable interest from cruise operators who want to offer assurances to their customers that they are proactively looking to minimise the environmental impact of their operations. They are doing this by getting ahead of regulations and implementing proven clean technologies that increase efficiencies and reduce fuel consumption and associated emissions.”
Data gathered from sea trials conducted with Shell and on-going testing over the past 24 months shows that the Silverstream™ System can deliver average net efficiency gains of 5% for tankers and 8% for larger, full bodied vessels like LNGs. The technology is the only air lubrication technology available which can be installed to both newbuilds and retrofits, even during a short dry docking. Most significantly, the Silverstream™ System uses 66% less energy than other air lubrication systems to power the compressors which keep cavities filled with air at the required pressure. Additionally, comparative air lubrication systems for cruise vessels use a greater number of larger compressors and air pipes, requiring significantly more space within a vessel’s hull. This increases the complexity of engineering, and greatly extends the time required to implement other technologies. The simplicity of retrofitting the Silverstream™ System means less downtime for vessels, and also reduces the cost of the technology by as much as 30%, compared to competitor products.
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