Concluding what has been a banner week for scrubber manufacturers Dutch MPP player Spliethoff Group has committed to install exhaust gas cleaning systems across its entire fleet ahead of the global 0.5% sulphur cap which comes into force in 2020.
Spliethoff was one of the earlier adopters of scrubbersm with subsidiary Transfennica installing them on six conros six years ago. It has since bought and installed the technology on many other ships.
In the coming months scrubbers will be installed on 30 more vessels of Spliethoff and sister companies BigLift Shipping and Sevenstar Yacht Transport.
“Thanks to scrubbers and with the support of our customers, Spliethoff Group will lower the impact of shipping on the environment and at the same time cope in a cost-efficient way with the cost increase caused by the stricter sulphur regulations,” said Arne Hubregtse, technical director of Spliethoff Group.
After years of holding back, a host of shipowners in the past week, led by tanker owners, have rushed to buy scrubbers. However, there are still less than 600 scrubbers sold with less than 17 months to go until the sulphur cap kicks in.
