MARINE insurers are investigating at least two separate scrubber-related incidents as insurers seek clarity over the potential heightened risk involved in vessels fitted with the exhaust gas cleaning systems.
Scrubbers came under the spotlight recently at the annual industry conference of The International Union of Marine Insurers (IUMI) held in Toronto. According to Rama Chandran, chairman of IUMI's ocean hull committee, a recent spate of incidents involving scrubbers are now officially under review, reported UK's Lloyd's List.
One of the cases discussed during the conference involved a 'catastrophic' engine room fire during a scrubber installation, AqualisBraemar managing director Paul Hill told IUMI.
'Any increased machinery on a vessel is going to be an increased risk,' he said, speaking at the ocean hull committee question and answer session.
He provided no further details about the fire, nor an engine room flooding in a vessel cited as a first, separate incident. Both of which have not been independently confirmed as being caused by scrubbers, by either the vessel owner or manufacturers involved.
The conference heard that the rise in the use of exhaust gas cleaning systems will increase risk for the hull and machinery sector, alongside the introduction of untested blends of unstable, incompatible lower-sulphur fuel oil which could damage ship engines.
Lloyd's List approached the Clean Shipping Alliance 2020, a lobby group set up last year by major shipping companies that have invested in scrubber technology ahead of the International Maritime Organizations' 0.5 per cent sulphur cap, for comment on the issue. 'We don't see it (EGCS) as any more of a liability than any other equipment in the engine room,' CSA 2020 chairman Mike Kaczmarek said in a statement.
Some 3,000 scrubbers are estimated to be installed on the world's largest bulk carriers and tankers by the end of the year, allowing them to use high-sulphur fuel oil and remain compliant with the IMO 2020 sulphur cap on bunker fuels that comes into effect in January.
'We haven't got a lot more details of whether there's been any significant losses on scrubbers?so we don't know how extensive this is and how systemic, or whether this is specific to one type of scrubber,' Mr Chandran said.
There is intensifying scrutiny of scrubbers amid reports of unexplained corrosion problems to pipework and discharge outlets that need replacement less than six months after installation.
Scrubbers remain untested technology, said Canadian shipowner Fednav's senior vice-president Thomas Paterson.
'What we hear from the ship managers is not encouraging. We hear of numbers of ships that are struggling to get the systems working, and a number of ships are having to put more crew on board to operate them. So certainly, it's a big issue.'
WORLD SHIPPING
Scrubbers came under the spotlight recently at the annual industry conference of The International Union of Marine Insurers (IUMI) held in Toronto. According to Rama Chandran, chairman of IUMI's ocean hull committee, a recent spate of incidents involving scrubbers are now officially under review, reported UK's Lloyd's List.
One of the cases discussed during the conference involved a 'catastrophic' engine room fire during a scrubber installation, AqualisBraemar managing director Paul Hill told IUMI.
'Any increased machinery on a vessel is going to be an increased risk,' he said, speaking at the ocean hull committee question and answer session.
He provided no further details about the fire, nor an engine room flooding in a vessel cited as a first, separate incident. Both of which have not been independently confirmed as being caused by scrubbers, by either the vessel owner or manufacturers involved.
The conference heard that the rise in the use of exhaust gas cleaning systems will increase risk for the hull and machinery sector, alongside the introduction of untested blends of unstable, incompatible lower-sulphur fuel oil which could damage ship engines.
Lloyd's List approached the Clean Shipping Alliance 2020, a lobby group set up last year by major shipping companies that have invested in scrubber technology ahead of the International Maritime Organizations' 0.5 per cent sulphur cap, for comment on the issue. 'We don't see it (EGCS) as any more of a liability than any other equipment in the engine room,' CSA 2020 chairman Mike Kaczmarek said in a statement.
Some 3,000 scrubbers are estimated to be installed on the world's largest bulk carriers and tankers by the end of the year, allowing them to use high-sulphur fuel oil and remain compliant with the IMO 2020 sulphur cap on bunker fuels that comes into effect in January.
'We haven't got a lot more details of whether there's been any significant losses on scrubbers?so we don't know how extensive this is and how systemic, or whether this is specific to one type of scrubber,' Mr Chandran said.
There is intensifying scrutiny of scrubbers amid reports of unexplained corrosion problems to pipework and discharge outlets that need replacement less than six months after installation.
Scrubbers remain untested technology, said Canadian shipowner Fednav's senior vice-president Thomas Paterson.
'What we hear from the ship managers is not encouraging. We hear of numbers of ships that are struggling to get the systems working, and a number of ships are having to put more crew on board to operate them. So certainly, it's a big issue.'
WORLD SHIPPING