Balpure BWT chosen for four MOL LNG newbuilds

Four LNG carriers being constructed for Mitsui O.S.K. Lines (MOL) by Hudong-Zhonghua Shipbuilding (Group) Co., Ltd, at its shipyard in Shanghai will be the first newbuild LNG carriers to install the Balpure ballast water treatment system from Severn Trent De Nora.

Each of the ships, which will be on long term charter with China Gas/ExxonMobil, will be supplied with a skid-mounted Balpure BP-5000 system able to treat ballast water flow rates of up to 5,000 cu.m/h. The first Balpure system will be installed in August 2012, with the last installation to be completed before the end of 2013.

Balpure, which received Type Approval in July 2011, utilizes electrolytic disinfection technology.

Balpure’s slip stream treatment approach, where one percent of the total ballast water flow is used to generate the hypochlorite disinfection solution, enables remote mounting away from the main ballast line. The Balpure slip stream treatment approach, coupled with a design that requires treatment only during the uptake of the ballasting cycle, offers significantly reduced power requirements when compared to competing technologies  -  ensuring low operational costs.  The Balpure system uses proprietary self-cleaning electrodes that eliminate the need for chemical and mechanical maintenance that could otherwise be time consuming for ship’s crew.

“We believe that this order with Hudong-Zhonghua Shipbuilding Group is a positive endorsement of the Balpure technology by shipping leaders Mitsui O.S.K. Lines and ExxonMobil,” said Jim McGillivray, Balpure general manager for Severn Trent De Nora. “With the Ballast Water Management Convention getting closer to ratification, owners and operators have begun to shortlist their preferred ballast water treatment solutions. Since our Type Approval in July, Balpure has begun to take a leading position on many of these preferred vendor listings.”

December 2, 2011