George Economou is installing exhaust gas cleaning systems on almost his entire fleet, in what amounts to an overall $350m investment in the technology.
His shipping group decided about nine months ago to place the scrubbers in all but two of its vessels, the owner revealed in an opinion piece published in TradeWinds this week.
“This will cost our group in excess of $350m,” Economou said in the article, in which he takes a swipe at regulators for mismanaging the transition to low-sulphur fuels in ways that have divided the shipping community and thrown it into disarray.
Economou’s private and public companies TMS and DryShips have a combined fleet of more than 100 bulkers and tankers.
'Immensely difficult'
In an interview with TradeWinds last spring, Economou said he was finding it “immensely difficult” to plot a strategy on the issue and that he would initially put some scrubbers on young tonnage before eventually deciding what to do.
Scrubbers have also played a big role in his group's decision to refrain from ordering newbuildings lately. The only exception is gas carrier unit TMS Cardiff Gas, led by his son Christos.
Economou urged officials at the IMO to take reasonable decisions on the scrubbers issue when they meet again in May. The rift between supporters and opponents should not widen further, he said.
At the same time, Economou dismissed studies raising concerns about scrubbers’ potential impact on the marine environment. Instead, he expressed faith in a recent study by the Japanese government that concluded that the discharge water was not detrimental to sea quality.
Early adopters of scrubbers should not be frustrated, Economou said. He expressed concerns that some industry players might eventually resort to the courts to protect their investment.
