ClassNK approves ballast water design
Global classification society, ClassNK, has granted Approval in Practice (AIP) to Namura Shipbuilding Co’s Minimal Ballast Water Ship (MIBS) VLCC design.
Namura’s new MIBS VVLC design has been developed in cooperation with the Shipbuilding Research Centre of Japan. It addresses the financial and technical challenges that shipowners are currently facing prior to the enforcement of the International Maritime Organisation’s (IMO) Ballast Water Management Convention.
The design features a flatter boon and standard breadth hull, which greatly reduces the amount of ballast water necessary for safe operations. This reduces the weight of the ballast water required in normal ballast conditions by around 65%, reducing fuel consumption and allowing the use of smaller ballast water treatment systems.
Noboru Ueda, chairman and president, ClassNK, said: “Namura Shipbuilding’s new MIBS design offers shipowners with another new practical solution. One that not only represents a massive technological leap in terms of ship design, but will also help reduce ballast water management costs for shipowners.”
He added: “Ballast water management is a major challenge for the maritime industry, and that is why ClassNK is constantly working with the industry to find new practical solutions.”
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