Cruise ships reduce fuel consumption

Genoa - Installing more energy efficient lightbulbs, better fan coil chillers in cabins and optimizing drinking water supply systems will reduce by hundreds of tons a cruise ship’s fuel consumption. The energy saving practices that go into Fincantieri-built ships at the firm’s shipyards are painstakingly detailed: cabin fan coils that save 290 tons of fuel per year; LED lighting translates into a 130-ton fuel reduction. Overall, significant strides taken by Carnival Cruise Line towards energy efficiency has led to a 10% reduction in power consumption across the fleet, meaning that a several-day long Mediterranean cruise today uses 15% less energy than in the past. Such numbers were the highlights of a report that Sandro Scarrone, head at Cetena (Fincantieri Group’s research and consultancy firm), presented on Monday at the forum “Passenger ships, ports and the environment”, organized by Secolo XIX/The MediTelegraph.

Even in waste-handling practices cruise ships look increasingly more like smart cities, but, then, on reaching shore that same level of care is often lacking; “But that gap needs to be addressed,” explained Scarrone. The future of ship propulsion lies definitely with LNG fuel: “It also makes sense from the economic point of view,” said the chairman of Cetena, “whoever gets there first becomes more competitive, not just from the moral standpoint, but also for the advantages to be gained. And, furthermore, the surrounding region benefits too, as going green goes hand in hand with hi-tech development: I’m thinking here of the Liguria region and new jobs.”

LNG fuel allows a significant reduction in environmental impact. But it’s not all positive: the report highlights two critical issues. As new technologies are installed on ships, they “use up” areas that could otherwise be destined for other, more profitable, activities: “Tanks, in particular, and related operating and safety equipment will take up space that was previously used for payloads,” Scarrone mentioned in the report. The most critical point for Italy, however, is the lack of LNG infrastructure to enable ships to be supplied: “It’s a method that reduces emissions, but, presently, shipowners have to get supplied in Barcelona or Gibraltar, because no facility exists in Italy,” said Scarrone, “While this technology could represent an opportunity for Genoa and Savona, it’s one that Liguria risks missing, if there are no facilities capable of meeting market demands.”