ERMA FIRST drops anchor in Green Marine program waters

Greece-based ballast water treatment specialist ERMA FIRST has formally joined Green Marine, an environmental certification program for the North American maritime industry.

As disclosed, the company stepped aboard the program to ‘bolster’ its commitment to ecologically responsible shipping on both sites of the Atlantic.

Becoming a member of Green Marine is also expected to open the door for ERMA FIRST to access a large network of maritime stakeholders, including but not limited to engineering and environmental consulting, ship managers, class societies, R&D firms, energy companies, governments, as well as maritime/port/ferry associations and shipping chambers, company representatives have highlighted.

Sharing his thoughts on this recent development, Nikos Drimalas, Sales Director of ERMA FIRST Group, commented: “Our participation in Green Marine aligns perfectly with ERMA FIRST GROUP’s mission to drive sustainable innovation within the maritime sector.”

“Through this collaboration, we aim to promote environmental solutions, including our complete Decarbonization portfolio including ESDs, AMP and CCS, the Ecochlor’s EcoOne BWTS Series, EcoBlue BWTS Chemical, Armada PALS solution, and other technologies, to help North American and European shipowners meet stringent regulatory standards.”

The Green Marine program was established in 2007 in North America as a shipping industry-led initiative aimed at going beyond regulatory sustainability standards and addressing multiple environmental matters such as air, water, biodiversity, land and community.

In May 2024, Green Marine International was incorporated to oversee the program’s environmental certification efforts across both North America and Europe. The Green Marine Europe branch of the initiative was launched in 2020.

It is believed that the program currently has over 185 participating shipowners, ports, terminals and shipyards in Canada and the United States; meanwhile, Green Marine Europe reportedly encompasses four ‘major’ shipyards, over 30 shipowners and a fleet of more than 500 vessels combined.

Among the program’s most recent members are Enstructure, a US-headquartered acquirer and operator of North American terminals and logistics infrastructure assets that joined in mid-October 2024, and public ferry service provider San Francisco Bay Ferry (SF Bay Ferry) which became an official member in December 2024.

At the end of November of that same year, the UAE-based logistics company DP World expanded its membership by adding the Vancouver, Nanaimo, and Saint John terminals to the program and having them join its Prince Rupert terminal that has been part of Green Marine since 2013.