Finland: Wartsila Gas Scrubber Ready for Volume Productio

Wärtsilä Corporation, the global leader in complete power lifecycle solutions and services, and Metso Corporation have signed an agreement to co-operate in developing and delivering scrubber systems for marine applications. Under the terms of this agreement, Metso is to supply the scrubber unit, while Wärtsilä is responsible for world-wide sales and integration of complete, certified, documented marine scrubber systems, including automation, water treatment, and ancillaries. Both Wärtsilä and Metso have extensive experience in the use of scrubber technology for land-based installations. 

Long co-operation and comprehensive experience
Wärtsilä and Metso have already for a number of years worked together in the development of scrubber technology. In 2005 the two companies, together with other companies within the Finnish maritime cluster, embarked on a programme to develop a feasible marine scrubber. 

By autumn 2007, the project had reached the stage of being ready for a test installation. A tanker, the MT ‘Suula’, owned by the Neste Shipping division of the Finnish company, Neste Oil Oyj, was made available and the project-testing phase began in November 2008. During the test period, which was completed in mid-2010, the ‘Suula’ operated primarily in the Baltic Sea but also visited many North Sea harbours. The sulphur removal efficiency was proven to be excellent and well within the International Maritime Organization’s (IMO) most stringent limits. Furthermore, the discharge water was also proven to be well in compliance with IMO Washwater Guidelines. 

This extensive development programme, from the establishment of the project group in 2005 until finalisation of the pilot tests on board a working tanker in 2010, culminated in the Wärtsilä SOx scrubber becoming the first such unit to be certified for marine applications. The classification societies Det Norske Veritas, Germanisher Lloyd and Bureau Veritas have granted the Wärtsilä unit a SOx Emissions Compliance Certificate.
First commercial order for Wärtsilä
In December 2010, Wärtsilä received its first commercial order for a scrubber for a marine application. Containerships Ltd Oy, a Finnish shipping customer, placed a contract for a turnkey installation onboard its vessel, ‘Containerships VII’, a ship equipped with a Wärtsilä W7L64 main engine. The scope of the order includes a Wärtsilä fresh water scrubber. The scrubber will be delivered to the customer in August 2011.
The more stringent IMO sulphur regulations, which require strict sulphur oxides control, are due to enter into force in January 2015 and will apply to Sulphur Emissions Control Areas (SECAs). With this in mind, a rapid ramp-up and development of the scrubber market is foreseen. Following the systematic development of this technology, its successful validation, and the agreement between Wärtsilä and Metso, Wärtsilä is committed and ready to fulfil the needs of the shipping industry regarding scrubber technology. The units can be delivered both for new ships, and as a retrofit for ships already in service.
Closed-loop system
The Wärtsilä scrubber system is based on a closed-loop fresh water scrubber to which sodium hydroxide (NaOH) is added as a means of neutralizing the SOx emissions. Seawater is used for cooling. The small bleed-off extracted from the loop is cleaned, thus fulfilling all quality and monitoring requirements stipulated by the IMO.
The most obvious benefit is the fact that prior to the introduction of closed-loop fresh water scrubber technology, the only options were sea-water scrubbing or the use of low-sulphur fuel. The price premium for such fuel is expected to rise as new sulphur limits are enforced, not only in SECA parts of the world but for global operation outside SECA. With effect from 2012, the global sulphur limit will be lowered to 3.5%, and from 2020 it will be further reduced to 0.5%. In Emission Control Areas, the limit is currently 1%, and this will be drastically reduced to a maximum of 0.1% in 2015. In EU ports, as from 1 January 2010, ships scheduled to be at berth for more than two hours are not allowed to use fuel containing more than 0.1% sulphur. This restriction applies for both engines and fuel oil fired boilers. The Wärtsilä scrubber offers a very viable alternative to the use of such fuel.
The Wärtsilä Exhaust Gas Scrubber enables cheaper heavy fuel oil (HFO) to be burned in all these areas as a low cost alternative to buying the increasingly expensive low sulphur fuel. The Return On Investment (ROI) is in the range of one to three years, and for larger installations, even less.
Wärtsilä Services
Services is one of the three Wärtsilä’s businesses alongside Ship Power and Power Plants. Headquartered in Helsinki, Finland, Wärtsilä Corporation operates the most extensive service network in the industry. Wärtsilä offers a range of services to both the global marine and energy markets. The company’s extensive services portfolio includes spare parts and field services, servicing of engines, propulsion systems, electrical and automation systems, as well as boilers. It also covers environmental services and solutions, upgrades and conversions, as well as long-term agreements for engine and propulsion systems and training services. Wärtsilä’s service business is also a leader in the development of new service concepts to meet customers’ needs in attaining optimal operational efficiency. Wärtsilä Services has some 70 fully owned workshops and employs more than 11,000 service professionals.