12 Business View Caribbean - January 2015
Opening
Lines
Royal Caribbean Cruises Ltd. will retrofit 19 of its ships
with advanced emissions purification (AEP) systems,
underscoring its commitment to meet or exceed im-
portant environmental standards. These systems, also
known as scrubbers, will remove more than 97 per-
cent of the sulfur dioxide emissions generated by the
ships' diesel engines.
The move will position RCL ahead of all forthcoming
International Maritime Organization Emission Control
Area emissions standards, and will ensure compliance
with existing European Union standards. Additionally,
the decision to install AEP systems instead of switch-
ing to a fuel with a lower sulfur content will ensure that
RCL's ships can be compliant everywhere they sail, as
availability of lower-sulfur fuels is limited.
Royal Caribbean Cruises Ltd. has been involved in de-
velopment, testing and planning for the use of AEP
technology since 2010. Two newly built RCL ships that
entered into service in 2014, Royal Caribbean Inter-
national's Quantum of the Seas and TUI Cruises' Mein
Schiff 3, were among the first cruise ships to be built
with AEP systems installed during initial construction.
Royal Caribbean International's Liberty of the Seas has
been operating one of its six engines with a retrofitted
AEP system for two years. AEP systems scrub exhaust
gases by injecting high volumes of water spray into the
exhaust stream.
“AEP technology for maritime vessels is very new, and
we expect that by utilizing multiple technological so-
lutions to accommodate the differences among our
ships, additional development will ultimately help in-
dustrialize AEP technology even more, which will ben-
efit not only RCL but also the larger maritime industry,”
said Adam Goldstein, president and COO, Royal Carib-
bean Cruises Ltd.
Royal
Caribbean
Steaming Toward Global
Emissions Standards
