Denmark, China sign on ballast water treatment

Danish Maritime and the Shipbuilding Information Centre of China (SICC) have signed an MoU in September in Qingdao, China, to collaborate on ballast treatment development which will lead to wider links between the countries’ maritime technology sectors.

The MoU, signed at the International Forum on Ballast Water Management Technology and Standardization, held in Qingdao, China on 12-13 September 2017, builds on an earlier agreement between the two governments in 2014 and renewed in February this year.

The aim of this MoU is to strengthen the cooperation in order to further develop the technologies and solutions for ballast water purification, both in relation to newly built ships and in relation to the retrofit of the existing fleet.

The cooperation agreement is expected to open up new opportunities for Danish maritime equipment manufacturers and ship design companies dealing with ballast water treatment solutions and technologies. SICC is run by the China Shipbuilding Industry Corporation (CSIC), which represents the major northern shipyard group in China.

    According to Jenny N. Braat, Managing Director of Danske Maritime: “It is worth pointing out that the Chinese have chosen the Danish maritime industry as the first to enter into such agreement. It proves that our industry has been well-noticed, now also in this new technology area. It is also the result of a long-term and targeted effort by the companies themselves and the Danish state, which signed a green shipbuilding agreement in February with which this new ballast water agreement is in line with.”