MSC Fantasia and MSC Preziosa are the fleet’s first ships to be retrofitted with hybrid Yara Marine Technologies’ SOx exhaust gas cleaning systems.
The equipment cleans the ship’s exhaust gases in accordance with the International Maritime Organization’s 0.1% Emission Control Area requirements.
It also guarantees compliance with the upcoming 0.5% global sulphur cap requirement that will come into force in 2020.
The project was led by a team from STX France, the yard that originally built the two vessels.
The installation of the process equipment was completed with the ship in full operation, while the exhaust gas cleaning system installation was carried out in drydock at Fincantieri's shipyard in Palermo.
'Innovation and respect for the environment are core values for our company and absolutely central to how we design, build and develop our ships,' said Emilio La Scala, president & md of MSC Cruises’ technical department.
'For this reason, we are pleased to have received Bureau Veritas’ MED Certificate for our first vessel as we continue to work to meet existing as well as upcoming international sulphur emissions requirements.'
Kai Latun, Yara Marine’s vp sales and marketing said, 'We are very happy that MSC Cruises has received the MED Certificate from Bureau Veritas for the first cruise ship that has been retrofitted with our exhaust gas cleaning systems.'
MSC Preziosa, the second MSC Cruises ship to have undergone this programme, is scheduled for sea trials during the first week of May, aiming to receive MED certification by mid-June.
Other ships in MSC Cruises’ fleet are set to be retrofitted with exhaust gas cleaning systems in coming years, ahead of the entry into force of the new international sulphur emissions requirements in January 2020.
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