LR confirms that Wärtsilä seals meet VGP requirements

Wärtsilä Oceanguard seal

JUNE 24, 2014 — Back in March, Wärtsilä announced that its Wärtsilä Airguard and Wärtsilä Oceanguard seal products can continue to utilize mineral oil since they meet the guidelines set out in the EPA’s 2013 revised Vessel General Permit. That means that owners and operators of commercial vessels of over 79 ft (24 m), sailing within U.S. waters with either of these systems installed are not required to change to an Environmentally Acceptable Lubricant (EAL).

Now Wärtsilä has received an important service level recognition for its Wärtsilä Airguard and Wärtsilä Oceanguard propeller shaft sealing systems from Lloyd’s Register.

The recognition confirms that the sealing systems meet the US Environmental Protection Agency’s (EPA) requirements. Wärtsilä is the first company in the industry to gain this recognition from Lloyd’s Register.

The Lloyds’ Register service level recognition, received on 22 May 2014, confirms that Wärtsilä’s Airguard and Oceanguard are well suited for their intended purpose and meet the US Environmental Protection Agency’s 2013 revised Vessel General Permit (VGP) requirements of Part 2.2.9 under normal operating conditions.

Prior to the approval, Lloyd’s Register conducted a desktop review where the product details were reviewed to establish whether the seal presents an “oil to sea” interface in normal operation. The results showed that the Wärtsilä Airguard and Oceanguard propeller shaft seals are able to be used with mineral oils and a range of environmentally acceptable lubricants as defined within the U.S. EPA VGP 2013. Furthermore, it was stated that the Wärtsilä Airguard and Oceanguard propeller shaft seals are unlikely to leak mineral oils into the sea during normal operating conditions.