BWTS Charis Valentakis, Euploia Drydocks and Services, shares his insight on the Greek shipping industry and state of the market for shipowners. How has the economy in Greece affected the Greek shipping industry? The Greek financial crisis has not affected the Greek shipping industry significantly, but the historic low cargo rates, especially those of bulk carriers, are forcing many Greek ship owners to send their older vessels to scrap and lay up their newer vessels.
Mr. Perlich, where in the process is Ecochlor to gain USCG Type Approval? Ecochlor hopes to complete all shipboard, land-based and environmental testing for USCG Type Approval in mid 2016. Upon receipt of those test results, we will submit our application to the USCG for Type Approval. Ecochlor is positioned to be one of the first BWTS to achieve consent for the USCG Type Approval. What upgrades have you made to the Ecochlor BWTS in order to achieve USCG Type Approval? The Ecochlor BWTS works just as effectively as it did when first installed in a ship in 2005 without any fundamental changes to the system. It is highly effective and meets or exceeds current International Maritime Organization (IMO) and USCG requirements with no need to upgrade. Are there attractive opportunities for shipowners in these times of crisis? I have always been impressed with the ability of the Greek Ship owners to understand and react appropriately to the cycle nature of the business. The overall market demand for BWTS seems to be on hold as shipowners wait for the Convention ratification and the fall-out from the USCG Type Approval.
Today, Ecochlor has the ability to build 150 to 180 systems per year. Throughout 2015, Ecochlor’s manufacturing and engineering teams have standardized processes and procedures to make it easy to ramp up production as needed.
What are the shipowners doing to prepare for the BWT convention ratification? I believe that the Greek shipping market is divided into two categories. The first group of shipowners has begun their preparation for the BWT convention ratification. This group has requested and received technical/economic offers from makers or independent technical offices, shortlisted qualified BWT makers, and are waiting until the BWT convention ratification will come into force before proceeding with purchases and installations. The second group of shipowners are just beginning to do the research by attending BWTS seminars, reading announcements and news articles, but are not moving beyond this stage. Some shipowners have decided to “wait it out” until a BWTS has been Type Approved by the USCG. What are your thoughts on that and what would you recommend that the shipowners do now? According to my experience, shipowners are waiting for a type-approved system by the USCG because they do not want to take the risk of selecting a maker whose system many not be approved. The decision to choose a BWTS can be time consuming. I recommend that shipowners are well prepared so they can quickly select and begin the installation process of a BWTS once IMO regulations come into force and a USCG Type Approved system is available.
Ecochlor is exclusively represented in Greece by Euploia Drydocks and Services Ltd. NAFS APRIL - MAY 2016 125