Hyde Marine’s Guardian ballast water treatment system has passed the revised IMO type-approval regime after a testing process conducted by DNV GL in Norway. The system is on the way to the final hurdle – gaining approval from the US Coast Guard
Hyde Marine* has announced it has successfully been awarded type-approval by the Norwegian Administration through Norway’s recognised organisation, DNV GL, under the newly revised Ballast Water Management Code (BMW Code), also known as MEPC.300(72).
Certification under this regulatory regime ensures the Hyde Guardian-US is now available for sale and installation on vessels around the world and will remain so even after the phase-out of the initial IMO type-approval regime on 28 October 2020. The system is still under review by the US Coast Guard (USCG) for type-approval under the requirements of 46 CFR 162.060.
“This is a substantial milestone,” said Hyde Marine executive director Chris Todd. “This means over 90% of the world’s fleet that does not discharge ballast water in the United States can begin installing the most advanced ballast water treatment system on the market today. There has been growing uncertainty over the availability of systems after the [28 October] deadline and this puts another key name across the finish line and ready to deliver product into 2021 and beyond.”
Hyde Marine noted that when the BWM Code was issued first as MEPC 279(70) on 26 October 2016, International Maritime Organization (IMO) took the stand that ballast water treatment systems need to be certified under a newly revised set of testing guidance or risk having their type-approvals invalidated two years after the revised test protocols were put into place. When the revised testing procedures were issued in April 2018, the mechanism was put in place that any system not approved under MEPC.300(72) could no longer be installed on vessels after 28 October 2020.
Hyde Marine senior market manager Mark Riggio said “We have been testing and developing our Hyde GUARDIAN-US system since the middle of 2015. We could have rushed a product to market. We chose to bring the right product to market and to certify it so shipowners will not have to change models mid-way through the implementation cycle.”
Hyde Marine has sold more than 500 of its ballast water treatment systems to date, making it one of the most prolific providers. The Hyde Guardian-US BWTS uses filtration and ultraviolet disinfection to treat ships’ ballast water. The design of the system closely mirrors the existing Hyde Guardian-Gold product, and Hyde Marine notes that customers can easily upgrade their existing equipment to meet the new treatment standard.
“Hyde Marine has been a leader in ballast water treatment since the drafting of the initial convention,” said Calgon Carbon executive vice president and chief commercial officer Jim Coccagno. “It should be no surprise to the market that we are ready for this latest regulatory change.”
According to Hyde Marine, the Guardian-US BTWS was tested with water containing organism counts far exceeding IMO and USCG requirements and was tested with the most demanding water conditions to challenge the limits of system performance. Hyde Marine’s new system features full, automatic flow regulation, an exclusive alarm which provides crews an indication that the system may be operating outside of the as-tested boundaries, and a pioneering dose-based algorithm for ensuring system performance.
Hyde Marine notes that systems installed prior to the expiry of the previously approved systems are still able to be used, owners with existing contracts or agreements may face a sudden need to change suppliers only one year into their retrofit cycle. By ensuring that customers had access to the Guardian-US product in early 2020, Hyde Marine states that it is allowing the market to prepare for these changes and secure supply throughout the entire retrofit cycle without costly restrictions of expensive re-engineering.
Hyde Marine is now waiting for the results of the US Coast Guard’s review so the product can also be offered to vessels flying the US flag and vessels that trade to, and discharge ballast in, the waters of the United States.
* Hyde Marine is a wholly-owned subsidiary of Calgon Carbon Corporation. Calgon Carbon is a wholly-owned subsidiary of the publicly listed company Kuraray Co, which is a manufacture and/or distribution of innovative coal-, wood- and coconut-based activated carbon products.
Ballast water treatment does not stop with compliance. Industry’s stakeholders discuss the issues in the Ballast Water Treatment Beyond Compliance webinar, which is now available to view.
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