Ballast Water Management System Retrofitting Needed to Meet New Provisions

The Maritime Environmental Protection Committee of the United Nations’ International Maritime Organization (IMO) has granted Siemens Final Approval for its Sicure ballast water management system. The Final Approval is based on a directive issued by the IMO, a specialized agency of the United Nations, which requires all deep-sea vessels to operate IMO-approved ballast water management systems. The objective is to avoid the spread of alien aquatic organisms and pathogens carried in untreated ballast water. The IMO directive will come into force in the near future and will entail retrofitting approximately 50,000 sea-going vessels worldwide.