Optimarin has signed a major fleet-wide ballast water treatment contract with Saga Shipholding (Norway) AS (SSH), the open-hatch carrier subsidiary of Nippon Yusen Kaisha (NYK), the world’s largest shipping company and owner of some 850 vessels operating within the car carriers, bulk, tanker (petroleum, chemical, LPG and LNG) and cruise sectors.

The retrofit contract, exceeding NOK 100 million, covers complete ballast water treatment (BWT) systems including engineering and service agreements for 24 sophisticated open-hatch bulk carriers.

With an agreement already in place for seven Saga and one NYK newbuildings, Optimarin’s combined Saga work program now amounts to NOK 140 million. Optimarin’s aggregate order book stands at NOK ­­­250 million, representing over 110 vessels. This positions the company as the world’s leading BWT systems supplier to the global shipping industry.

The Saga contracts call for large scale Optimarin Ballast Systems (OBS) capable of handling all seawater salinities and fresh water in accordance to the International Maritime Organisation’s ballast water management convention. The OBS system features a fully back-flushing filter with 40 micron screens. It is fully automatic and self-cleaning and capable of removing large sediment particles, zooplantkton and phytoplankton under heavy sediment load conditions.