Optimarin secures further Fincantieri business as order pipeline grows after USCG

Optimarin has signed a new agreement with Fincantieri Bay Shipbuilding (FBS) in Sturgeon Bay, Wisconsin for the delivery of two 500 m*/h capacity Optimarin Ballast Systems (OBS). The contract, identical to one secured last year, comes at a busy time for the Norwegian ballast water treatment (BWT) specialist, which has seen order enquiries go “through the roof* since securing USCG approval in December, the company said in its press release.

The fresh agreement will see both systems installed on an 155,000-barrel capacity clean products barge, with delivery scheduled for August 2018. It is, according to Optimarin CEO Tore Andersen, an important sign of the trust his company's clients have in both his business and its environmentally friendly UV technology.

Optimarin has been exclusively focused on developing BWT technology since its formation in 1994. Renowned as the company to install the first ever commercial system - on the Princess Regal in 2000 - it also became the first supplier to receive full USCG approval in December 2016.

Optimarin has now received orders for around 500 OBS systems, with more than 300 installed worldwide. Over 100 of these have been retrofits, delivered in conjunction with Global Engineering partners Goltens and Zeppelin Power Systems.

Last year was the firm's most successful ever, as, fuelled by its success with the USCG, it won contracts for over 120 BWT units.

Alongside approval from IMO and USCG, Optimarm's technology is certified by a comprehensive range of classification organisations, including DNV GL. Lloyd’s, Bureau Veritas, MUT Japan, and American Bureau of Shipping.