Air Lubrication News

Air lubrication system company Silverstream Technologies has signed an MoU with Yiu Lian Dockyards (Shekou), one of the largest ship repair yards in China and part of China Merchants Group.The partnership aims to drive retrofit installations of the Silverstream® System.Yiu Lian Dockyards (Shekou) operates repair yards in Shekou, Shenzhen. The shipyard accepts all major vessel types but is well known as the leading repair yard in China for LNG carriers.The dockyard has serviced 734 vessels in the past three years from all segments, and so far in 2024 alone, it has dry-docked 28 LNG carriers.

Maritime air lubrication company Silverstream Technologies has opened its new Global Operations Center in Southampton, U.K., in an effort to enhance its operational capabilities and support the existing fleet. The new hub, which accommodates more than 40 employees, is also equipped for further R&D on Silverstream’s Control and Monitoring System (CMS) solutions.Founded in 2010, Silverstream completed its first installation in 2014 and today has 80 systems installed on board ships.

Air lubrication system provider Armada Technologies™ and Qatar Shipyard Technology Solutions have signed a Memorandum of Understanding (MoU) to collaborate on installing Armada’s Passive Air Lubrication Systems (PALS) on vessels.The partnership aims to improve vessel energy-efficiency, reduce operating costs and minimize the emission of carbon and other pollutants to ships.Armada will provide technical and commercial support to facilitate the integration of PALS into vessel designs…

Armada Technologies announced the close of its seed funding round, raising a total of $3.2 million, including contributions from both strategic partners and traditional financial investors to advance eco-friendly maritime solutions.Cool Company Management Ltd. (CoolCo) a strategic partner within the liquefied natural gas (LNG) space, is to part-fund Armada equipment that will be installed on its vessels with this seed round. Ecochlor, Inc. continues to provide investment and technical support to the company as its growth partner.

Armada Technologies has secured a hull lubrication contract with LNG carrier company Cool Company Ltd (CoolCo).Under the partnership, Armada will design, engineer, procure, and provide support for the installation and commissioning of its air lubrication system on a CoolCo vessel scheduled to dry dock in 2024. Once commissioned, CoolCo will conduct sea trials and provide documentation to Armada, following ISO or ITTC guidance, to measure the system's performance.Armada CEO Alex…

Silverstream Technologies announced it has signed a collaboration agreement with marine engine designer MAN Energy Solutions to explore solutions to drive retrofits and newbuild installations of its air lubrication system aboard vessels featuring MAN's two stroke engines.With approximately half of the world’s commercial ships powered by MAN Energy Solutions, the collaboration will help further accelerate the adoption of Silverstream’s  air lubrication technology, the Silverstream System…

Silverstream Technologies appointed Catriona Savage into the newly created position of Chief Technology Officer (CTO). Savage will lead the continued development of the innovative Silverstream System and will further develop the technical centre-of-excellence built by Silverstream Technologies. The new role will lead on Product Development and Application Engineering and all aspects of product quality, safety and performance.Savage joins Silverstream following a career at BMT as Technical Assurance and Capability Director…

Odfjell Ship Management has selected Alfa Laval’s OceanGlide fluidic air lubrication system for installation on one of their tankers later this year.OceanGlide is newly acquired technology for Alfa Laval. The patented and class-approved system utilizes fluidic oscillators to generate an even layer of micro air bubbles across a vessel’s entire flat bottom, reducing friction and drag and therefore fuel consumption and CO2 emissions. The fluidic technology creates streamlined sections on the vessel’s flat bottom, each with its own fluidic band that generates bubbles.

Armada Technologies announced that Irish Ferries has contracted for a feasibility study and integration engineering for the Armada ‘passive air lubrication system’ (PALS) on board its RoPax cruise ferry W.B. Yeats.Armada’s PALS is a second-generation air lubrication system that uses the vessel’s own forward motion to drive water through a series of openings in the bow region of the vessel. These openings direct system water through branch lines to venturis and injectors that then passively delivers an optimal air/water mix (rather than simply air) for hull lubrication of unparalleled efficacy."One of the major complaints shipowners have…

U.K.-based Silverstream Technologies announced it has secured an order to supply its air lubrication system for a series of six new liquefied natural gas (LNG) carriers being built for Abu Dhabi National Oil Company (ADNOC) by China's CSSC Jiangnan Shipyard Group Co. Ltd.Scheduled for delivery in 2025 and 2026, the six new 175,000-cubic-meter-capacity (CBM) vessels will be the first LNG carriers built at Jiangnan Shipyard and among the first Chinese-built LNG carriers fitted with…

As the ship owners globally experiment with technologies to help incrementally cut emissions to meet stringent new IMO mandates, news out of south Florida indicates that Carnival Corporation, the world's largest cruise company, has made plans to expand the installation and use of Air Lubrication Systems (ALS) to a majority of the cruise line brands in its fleet through 2027; a move the cruise major expects witll generate "significant savings in fuel consumption and carbon emissions" by reducing hull drag by approximately 5% per ship.The pick for air lubrication is the Silverstream System ALS…