Ballast Water Management Systems News

With the final ballast water deadline fast approaching, UV-based water treatment specialist BIO-UV Group said it anticipates an increase in inspections as Port State Control (PSC) inspectors check machinery installations, crew competencies and Ballast Water Management (BWM) Plans.From September this year, all vessels subject to the BWM Convention must have installed a D-2 compliant ballast water treatment system capable of dealing with the maximum number of viable organisms allowed to be discharged.

BIO-UV Group has received an order from SIEM Ship Management to supply its BIO-SEA Ballast Water Treatment Systems for a trio of SIEM-managed car carriers. The order, for retrofit installation to the Siem Copernicus, Siem Curie and Siem Socrates, is the latest in a series of deliveries of BIO-SEA B-Series equipment for installation onboard around a dozen SIEM Ship Management reefer vessels since 2021.In this latest order, BIO-UV Group’s maritime division will provide B02 BIO-SEA BWTS units with a medium to high flow rate of 300-cu.m.

IACS has published a new recommendation, Rec. 180, for Conducting Commissioning Testing of Ballast Water Management Systems (BWMS).Efforts to streamline the implementation of BWM Convention took a significant step forward with IMO’s approval of the “2020 Guidance for the commissioning testing of BWMS" and IACS has now further bolstered these efforts with the development of a comprehensive Recommendation (Rec. 180) to facilitate the smooth, effective and harmonized implementation of commissioning tests requirements in line with the international regulations.The guidance in Rec.

Optimarin AS, a Norwegian supplier of ballast water treatment systems (BWTS), announced it has agreed to acquire the Hyde Marine UV business from the Italian multinational Industrie De Nora S.p.A.

Ballast water management systems (BWMS) manufacturer Techcross said it plans to roll out a variety of eco-friendly shipbuilding equipment lineups in addition to the existing BWMS at the Sea Japan 2024 maritime trade show."The optimal solutions provided, based on extensive engineering and installation experience, are expected to not only reduce costs for customers but also contribute to the protection of the Earth’s environment," the South Korean-based company said.Techcross said it will also officially begin sales of HYCHLOR 2.0, a non-filter type indirect electrolysis BWMS that received U.S.

Techcross recently opened the doors for its new training center in Athens, Greece, its 7th training center opened globally in major shipping hubs that offers training on actual equipment.An opening ceremony for the Greece training center, designated as a hub for training in Europe region, was held recently at the newly relocated ARGO NAVIS building. The ceremony was attended by nine representatives, including Park Seog-won, CEO of Techcross, and Ioannis Alevropoulos and Maximous-Ioannis Katsidimas…

Techcross announced its filterless HYCHLOR 2.0 ballast water management system (BWMS) obtained type approval from the U.S. Coast Guard at the end of January 2024.Techcross' HYCHLOR 2.0 is an updated version of the company's  HYCHLOR 1.0 system, which received USCG type approval in 2020. Notably, the filter had been eliminated in the HYCHLOR 2.0 system.BMWS filters, which play a role in initially filtering out sediment in seawater, have been a source of many AS service issues due to clogging or maintenance troubles.While the absence of filters may raise concerns about disinfection capability…

Mouawad Consulting, Boll & Kirch, bestUV, KraftPowercon and Lower Lakes Towing, have received CAD 5 million from Transport Canada towards a project aimed at addressing technical challenges surrounding the installation, operation, and maintenance of ballast water management systems (BWMS) on vessels operating within the Great Lakes and St. Lawrence River (GLSLR) region."The significance of this grant cannot be overstated. Through our partnership with Mouawad Consulting, Boll & Kirch…

Techcross, a comprehensive environmental company, will participate in the 2023 Kormarine.Techcross, known for its performance and sales in electrolysis-type ballast water management systems (BWMS), will showcase its expansion into new business areas alongside its existing BWMS at the 2023 Kormarine.As regulations have become more stringent for achieving net-zero and environmental protection goals, Techcross has diversified its lineup of ESD (Energy Saving Device) aimed at improving ship operation efficiency as well as focusing on AMP system.

Next year marks a crucial milestone for the International Maritime Organization’s (IMO) Ballast Water Management (BWM) Convention, with all ships required to meet the D2 standard for ballast water management by 8 September 2024. D2 specifies the maximum number of viable organisms allowed to be discharged. In most cases, it requires the installation of a ballast water management system (BWMS) on board the vessel.2024 will be a pivotal moment for the ballast water market and while it is true that the retrofit market will diminish and leave behind only a small newbuild market…

Ballast water management system company Techcross said it has installed a BWMS in the engine room of an existing tanker. This installation method, called the “Engine Room Solution”, was patented under the name of Techcross in Korea in 2016 and has been applied only to new ships so far. However, this is the first time it has been applied to an existing ship.One set of ECS 1000B model was installed on the 50,400 PC tanker owned by Horizon Tankers Limited S.A. (under Target Marine Group), based in Greece, using Techcross’ Engine Room Solution.

BIO-UV Group said that a BIO-SEA Ballast Water Treatment System (BWTS) designed for the Unites States Navy (USN) completed Factory Acceptance Tests (FAT) at the production facility in France. BIO-UV Group now has approval to ship the system to a USN facility for operational testing.BIO-UV Group is working with The Columbia Group, Inc. (TCG), a U.S.-based engineering partner, and prime contractor in the development project. Teaming up with BIO-UV Group design engineers, TCG was…

The US Coast Guard’s Office of Commercial Vessel Compliance has released its U.S. Port State Control Annual Report for 2022, with Latvia noted as having the highest detention ratio, ahead of Bolivia.The report lists highest risk flag administrations based on their 2020-2022 detention ratio as: Latvia (57.14%), Bolivia (31.25%), Togo (7.69%), Curacao (4.88%), Italy (3.39%), Turkey (2.90%) and Saint Vincent and the Grenadines (2.30%).Medium risk flag administrations were Cyprus…

Techcross reports positive responses from its customers in the service sector premised on it providing proactive services and troubleshooting through the Techcross Smart Platform. The Smart Platform, launched early last year, is a service platform that collects and analyzes all log data of BWMS in real-time.Customers can receive proactive solutions from Techcross through the Smart Platform before any issues related to equipment failures, malfunctions or maintenance arise. In the past year…

Techcross is accelerating the completion of its smart process and the establishment of an AI-based database.Techcross completed the automation of its coating liquid mixing process at the end of last year after being selected for the ‘2021 Smart Factory Establishment and Advancement Project’, which was hosted by the Ministry of SMEs and Startups, and funded with approximately $550k. The key objective was to reduce errors by introducing an automation process for making the coating mixture…

Since the ballast water management system discussion started nearly two decades ago, a clear concern was the ability to fit new equipment on existing ships, placing a strain on both space and power. Last month we caught up with a few key suppliers to for their insights on market development.How many BWMS have you sold and installed to date?Maxime Dedeurwaerder, BIO-UV GroupLast year has proven to be the best on record, with roughly 200 BIO-Sea units delivered. All told, since we entered the ballast water market, we have about 700 units in service or pending commissioning.

BIO-UV Group reported a 31% increase in revenues from its maritime business segment, contributing to full-year consolidated revenues of $56m for the 2022 financial year, confirming the sale of more than 200 BIO-SEA ballast water treatment systems throughout the course of the year."2022 was another year of very strong growth for BIO-UV Group, for both the Land and Marine divisions," said Benoît Gillmann, Founder, Chairman and CEO of BIO-UV Group.“Ultimately, targets were exceeded with $1.6 million more in sales than the $54 million we had anticipated.

Norwegian offshore drilling contractor Island Drilling has contracted Ecochlor to install their new EcoOne Container Unit on board the Island Innovator semi-submersible rig.Vidar Vik, Technical Section Leader at Island Drilling, said: "Our research in choosing a BWMS for the Island Innovator was a very difficult process because of the unique ballasting needs for offshore rigs. "We were interested in the EcoOne Container Unit because it was filterless, which allowed for a very simple installation…

Techcross’ ballast water management systems have received Lloyd's Register's Cyber Security Capability certification.The company said that the two models that received the certificate are ECS, direct electrolysis and HYCHLOR, indirect electrolysis.According to, LR Classification that Techcross is the first company to receive the Cyber Security Capability certification in the BWMS industry and Asia. With the recent development of smart ships, ship management has transitioned to being computer-driven…

Ballast Water Containers, part of the Malin group, said it has secured a contract from Ecochlor for the design and manufacture of a containerized ballast water management system. An offshore container will house Ecochlor’s EcoOne BWMS and the unit will be installed on a semi-submersible drilling rig. With treatment components supplied by Ecochlor, the BWC team will manage both the design and fabrication of the customized container, which will need to withstand harsh offshore conditions, with temperatures ranging from lows of - 20 degrees C to highs of + 45 degrees. As the container is housed on a semi-submersible, a custom design is…

Freshwater ecosystems are threatened by a host of environmental stressors from human activities. Among the most insidious and impactful of these is invasion by non-native species.Over the past two centuries, established populations of nearly 190 non-native species of invertebrates, fishes, plants and microbes have been discovered in the Great Lakes basin. They were introduced through several sources and pathways including canals, pet release, bait bucket dumping, aquaculture escapes…

French firm GTT has developed a versatile LNG feeder & bunker vessel concept for worldwide operation without the use of ballast water.Every day, many ships carry on board a considerable quantity of seawater as ballast over the oceans. Technically, this is needed in empty or partially loaded conditions, in order to maintain seaworthiness, reach sufficient draft for propeller immersion, and avoid excessive bow slamming.Such ballasting requires investment for the onboard systems and leads to substantial operating costs.

Ecochlor launched a containerized version of the EcoOne filterless ballast water management system (BWMS), targeting the Semi-Submersible Rigs, Jack-Up Rigs, Drillships, FPSOs, FSRUs and other vessels with infrequent ballasting operations at medium to high flow rates.“The EcoOne Container Unit offers incredible benefits to Mobile Offshore Drilling Units (MODU),” said Andrew Marshall, Ecochlor CEO. “One system can simultaneously serve up to four separate sea chests or quadrants, in the case of the semi-submersible rigs.