EMEA News
VDL AEC Maritime Completes Installation of 24 Scrubbers
VDL AEC Maritime says it has completed the installation of 24 scrubbers on vessels of Athens-based ship owner Maran Dry Management Inc.
The programme has been underway for the last three years.
"Despite the many challenges at the various shipyards in South East Asia the joint project team of Maran Dry Management Inc. and VDL AEC Maritime was always able to deliver according the strict and predefined schedule and maintain an average of 20 installation days allowing the dry dock to be vacated on time and the commissioning process to begin," VDL AEC Maritime said in a written statement.
A surge of orders for exhaust gas cleaning systems (EGCS) ahead of IMO 2020 created backlog at yards trying to complete the work ahead of the January 1, 2020 introduction of the new fuel rules.
In mid-2019 owners were reporting installs were taking twice as long as scheduled - some 25-30 days instead of the anticipated 15.
Delays caused by the COVID-19 pandemic then caused further delays at yards.
While the collapse in oil prices and resulting narrowing of the HSFO/LSFO spread has since taken the pressure off the scrubber market, in January Ship & Bunker looked at the potential for a new "Second wave" of scrubber uptake.
