Ship owners have only one year left for equipping their vessels with ballast water treatment systems

28.10.2016

In September 2017, the International Convention for the Control and Management of Ships’ Ballast Water and Sediments will come into effect. This document is one of the most important in a series of measures taken by the international community for protecting marine ecosystems. So what exactly does this document have for ship builders and ship manufacturers?

Under the Convention, ship owners will have to equip their vessels with systems for clearance, decontamination, and prevention of seawater and pathogenic organisms from penetrating into the ballast water and sediments during intake or disposal. Installation and commissioning of ballast water treatment systems is not an easy task requiring labor efforts, significant amount of time, and sometimes, individual design and engineering.

The specialists of the Kronstadt engineering company in cooperation with the PANASIA company, a ballast water treatment systems manufacturer from South Korea, have long been carrying out such projects quite successfully by organizing engineering development, selection and supplies of the necessary equipment.

Since 1989, manufacturing of ballast water treatment systems has been PANASIA's main business activity area. The company introduces a variety of scientific and technological innovations and know-hows in its GloEn-Patrol™ series. The systems in this series combine advantages of conventional filtration and usage of U/V rays to effectively decontaminate hazardous microorganisms and pathogenic flora in the ballast water without formation of any toxic substances during intake and disposal processes. PANASIA GloEn-Patrol™ have all the necessary ISO, OHSAS, and PPM certificates.

Meanwhile, after Finland ratified the Convention, the number of signatories became 52, with their total fleet tonnage of 35% of all vessels in the world. This means that the Convention shall come into effect and become legally binding as early as in September 2017.