German container line Hapag-Lloyd is to install scrubbers on 10 ships in 2019 and 2020.
The decision to retrofit the exhaust cleaners (EGCS) on the 13,000-teu Hamburg-class vessels will allow it to meet IMO 2020 fuel rules, it said.
The first vessel, the 13,169-teu Hamburg Express (built 2012), will be ready next March at Qingdao Beihai shipyard in China.
The line has ordered hybrid-ready kits.
“Using compliant low-sulphur fuels is the key solution for Hapag-Lloyd. However, we want to make sure we test and make use of all relevant solutions, which is why we decided to also retrofit our Hamburg Class vessels with EGCS,” said COO Anthony Firmin.
Hapag-Lloyd also has 17 new vessels in its fleet, which can be converted to use LNG.
It is retrofitting one 15,000-teu ship next year and will then test whether LNG is a suitable alternative to low-sulphur fuel.
In September, CEO Rolf Habben Jansen said the company was still evaluating whether to fit LNG propulsion on a series of 15,000-teu boxships and scrubbers on a group of 13,000-teu vessels.
Hapag-Lloyd plans to recoup $1bn per year from the extra cost of using low-sulphur fuel through surcharges.
