LR Renews Certification of Bunker-Saving Ecospeed for Ice Ships

LR renewed its certification of Subsea Industries' Ecospeed hard coating.

Classification society Lloyd’s Register (LR) Wednesday announced that it has renewed its certification of Subsea Industries NV's (Subsea Industries') bunker-saving Ecospeed hard coating as an approved abrasion resistant hull protection system for vessels operating in Polar waters.

The coating is said to enable the reduction of ice belt thickness by up to 1mm.

"This is a considerable saving for shipowners planning newbuilds for Arctic operations. It also reduces the overall weight of the vessel," said Manuel Hof, Subsea Industries' Production Executive and NACE Coatings Inspector.

"An added advantage is that ice-going vessels operating with Ecospeed do not need to recoat their hulls year on year because there is minimal damage to the coating. That’s a further saving. In effect, the coating forms part of the hull structure."

The renewed certification means that Ecospeed will be recognised by LR as an approved abrasion-resistant ice coating for a further five years.

The certification renewal is noted to come at a time of increased offshore support vessels operations, expedition-type cruising in polar waters, and a growing interest in the Northeast Passage and Northern Sea Route for commercial shipping.

"Lloyd’s Register’s renewal confirms the lasting durability and strength of Ecospeed and is indicative of the increasing confidence classification societies have in hard-type protective hull coatings," said Boud Van Rompay, Subsea Industries’ CEO.

In August, Subsea Industries announced it had optimised its range of Ecospeed hard coat marine coatings to reduce hull friction by as much as 40 percent, translating to a similar reduction in bunker consumption.