Japan’s Tsuneishi Shipbuilding has completed its first retrofitting installation of a Ballast Water Management System (BWMS) on a capesize bulker.

The Japanese shipyard said the bulker carrier entered the dock on 3 March and installation was completed on 20 March before the vessel left the dock on 23 March after various tests were performed.

“Tsuneishi Shipbuilding will develop the market in retrofitting ships for BWMS by comparing different manufacturers’ BWMS performance based on capacity and installation space, as well as by calculating the retrofitting expenses and lifecycle costs, in order to continue offering the most appropriate and economically efficient BWMS retrofit projects that are in line with the ship’s operating schedule,” it said.

Installation of BWMS to existing ships is being endorsed by the IMO, which adopted the Ballast Water Management Convention for the preservation of biodiversity.

The Convention will enter into force one year after ratification by 30 countries, representing 35% of the world’s merchant shipping tonnage.

As at 16 April 2015, the Convention has 44 countries as signatories but their combined shipping tonnage fell short at 32.86% of the world’s total.