Saudi Arabian oil and gas giant Saudi Aramco is intending to secure ABS environmental protection notations for its entire fleet.
Saudi Aramco said on Thursday that it wanted to achieve Enviro notation for each of the 23-strong fleet of offshore support vessels, tugs, self-elevating units, and special purpose vessels.
Seven vessels have already been awarded the notation, with the remainder of the fleet in the process of being evaluated.
Abdullah Tewairqi , marine department manager at Saudi Aramco, said: “ Obtaining the environmental notation illustrates the Marine Department’s willingness to go well beyond basic compliance as part of our ongoing commitment to maritime excellence, and environmental protection in particular.
“ This international accreditation confirms and consolidates Saudi Aramco’s standing as a market leader in the field of Marine Environmental Protection ”.
Patrick Ryan , ABS SVP for global engineering and technology, added: “ ABS is committed to supporting the industry in reaching its environmental objectives and the ABS Enviro suite of notations sends a strong message that environmental impact has been fully considered.
“ The Enviro notation demonstrates both Saudi Aramco’s and ABS’ commitment to the Kingdom of Saudi Arabia’s higher environmental standards, and we are proud to be able to support Saudi Aramco in achieving their vision for a fleet that is equipped for greener operations ”.
The Enviro notation identifies the level of compliance with international environmental protection requirements and integrates further ABS environmental protection requirements.
The notation, together with the enhanced Enviro+ notation, was developed with the objective of promoting an environmentally focused design, construction, and operation of ABS-classed vessels.
The Enviro suite of notations is popular with shipowners, with more than 1,100 vessels in the global fleet holding one or more of them.
ABS also said on Thursday that it expanded remote survey technologies which can now provide surveys for the majority of the world’s offshore drilling units.