Ireland-based Ardmore Shipping is to retrofit more MR tankers with a scrubber that is ready to also capture carbon.
Dutch manufacturer Value Maritime said the shipping company has ordered three more of its Filtree systems for product carriers.
Ardmore had already committed to installing six kits on its ships.
The vessels added to the list are the 49,000-dwt Ardmore Engineer and the 50,000-dwt Ardmore Exporter and Ardmore Seavanguard (all built 2014).
The work will take place during regularly scheduled drydockings in the first quarter of 2024 at yards in Asia, to ensure no commercial disruption.
Filtree filters sulphur, CO2 and 99% of ultra-fine particulate matter from the tankers’ exhaust stream, using a clean loop mechanism.
The tankers will also be fitted with a modular CO2 capture and storage system to help reduce further emissions.
The CO2 will be sent to tanks on board to be later discharged onshore, where it can be used in the sustainable cultivation of greenhouse crops, methanol plants and the food industry.
Yvette van der Sommen, director for Asia Pacific at Value Maritime, said: “You know you are headed in the right direction when you see your clients returning to expand their use of your emission-reducing technology and continuing to develop greener operations with you.”
“The value, instant impact on ship’s emissions and quick return on investment is clear for us to see, and we’re heartened that Ardmore Shipping sees it too,” she added.
Future-proofing
Garry Noonan, director of innovation at New York-listed Ardmore, explained his company believes in collaborating with business and technical partners to create solutions addressing the energy transition.
"As we adopt what might be referred to as the next generation in exhaust gas cleaning system technology, Value Maritime's Filtree is exceptional in that it not only cleans and neutralises overboard discharge but also offers an additional benefit in the form of a potential carbon capture upgrade," he said.
"This gives us flexibility today while economically and efficiently future-proofing our vessels for tomorrow,” Noonan added.
Value Maritime was formed in 2017.
Boxship owners Visser and JR Shipping, Idan Ofer’s Eastern Pacific Shipping, and Purus Maritime and Nordic Hamburg have already signed up to trial its Filtree technology.
