Fuel costs constitute roughly 60-70 percent of operating cost for a ship. Properly maintained propeller and hull surfaces alone hold the potential of saving the world fleet up to 30 billion USD and reduce the emissions of greenhouse gases by 0.3 percent of total man made emissions, begging Soeyland  to ask the question: Would you pay more upfront if you could get savings and reduce your carbon footprint over time?

The Bellona Foundation, a member of the Clean Shipping Coalition, in cooperation with the Norwegian paint manufacturer Jotun, convened a second workshop in London on the 9-10th May. The meeting took place in the offices of Intertanko.

As in the previous workshop in Oslo, experts from all relevant stakeholders took part. Participants included major ship paint manufacturers, performance monitoring technology providers, classification societies as well as shipowners.

“We have progressed with great speed since submitting our first rough proposal to the International Maritime Organisation (IMO) in February 2012,” said Soeyland.

“Delegates to the Marine Environment Committee provided a nudge for further work, which encouraged us to start the process of getting a standard approved by the International Standardization Organization (ISO),” he said, adding, “It is important to note that we are not seeking a ‘one size fits all’ solution or the creation of a mandatory regulation. An ISO standard will be used by stakeholders based on its merit as a reliable and transparent voluntary standard.”

He noted that the Bellona Foundation regards performance standards of this kind to be a good basis for improving an understanding of what can be achieved, and emphasizes whatever instruments or market-based measures that may emerge in the future should be based on standards of the same kind of rigor and environmental integrity as the proposed hull and propeller performance measurement standard.

On May 30, the ISO will decide if Bellona has provided a satisfactory outline for a new standard. Bellona will, together with the 40 plus stakeholders, follow the work of both the ISO and the IMO. A more comprehensive draft should be submitted by November 13, 2013. Their work toward a standard within ISOS has a three-year deadline.

 “The Bellona Foundation believes that standards established by affected players will be much more effective and fit for purpose than waiting for bureaucrats to establish regulations that normally carry a higher transaction cost and also aim to meet an unfeasible target of one size fits all,” said Soeyland.

Presentations from the workshop held at the Intertanko office in London 9 – 10 May 2013 can be downloaded in order to the right:

-Environmental Benefits of a Reliable and Transparent Hull and Propeller Performance Standard, Svend Soeyland Bellona Foundation

-Presentation of the ISO New Work Item Proposal on Measurement of Hull Propeller Performance, Geir A. Oftedahl, Jotun Hull Performance Solutions

-ISO input to workshop hull and propeller performance, Knut Aune Standard Norway

-Required accuracy on measurement of speed, fuel consumption and power for 1% accuracy of estimation on performance, Koichi Yoshida, MTI/JSTRA

-How to identify hull and propeller performance, Paul McStay, Lloyd’s Register

-Jotun Hull Performance Measurement Method (JHPMM),

Geir A. Oftedahl, Jotun Hull Performance Solutions

-Performance Monitoring – A Tiered Approach,Trevor Solomon, International Marine Coatings

-Method for establishing fuel savings,Tristan Smith, Energy Institute University City of London

-Draft summary of discussions day 1,