Bilfinger: Scrubber Market Has "Huge Potential"

IMO 2020 will affect roughly 50,000 vessels. Image Credit: Ship & Bunker

Industrial services provider Bilfinger, whose portfolio includes exhaust gas cleaning system technology, says the upcoming IMO 2020 global sulfur cap has created "huge market potential" for marine scrubbers as part of growing interest for environmental technologies.

The new 0.50% sulfur cap for marine fuel comes into force from January 1, 2020, and "[g]iven that the newly introduced thresholds will affect roughly 50,000 vessels, the market potential for Bilfinger's self-developed scrubber solutions is huge," the company said.

Of course, Bilfinger is not alone in its upbeat assessment; the Exhaust Gas Cleaning Systems Association (EGCSA) said in May its members secured orders for 71 scrubbers, and this week there has been a procession of announcements from owners revealing they have invested in the technology.

Bilfinger this week also added to the buoyant demand picture with news that in "the past weeks alone" it has received orders to outfit at least 42 vessels.

The deals were valued at €40 million ($45 million) and came from several Greek maritime shipping companies including Maran Tankers, Anangel Maritime, Delta Tankers, and Marmaras Navigation.

"These contracts serve as excellent references and will open doors to additional projects in the maritime sector. Given that scrubbers are a practically competition-free product whose cost can be depreciated over one to two and a half years, we expect to see vigorous demand for our solutions," said Michael Löffelmann, Executive President of Bilfinger's Engineering & Technologies division.

"The many new orders in our book also validate the approach we have taken to transpose our unique expertise in the field of industrial plant and equipment to other growth sectors."