Shearwater’s new decarbonization move enables ‘first of its kind’ tune-up of vessel’s engine technology

Norway’s marine geoscience and technology player Shearwater GeoServices has signed up for further carbon footprint cuts thanks to an upgrade of main engines at one of its seismographic research ships, which is envisioned to result in more sustainable and efficient operations.

While describing the upgrade as a “first of its kind,” the Norwegian player underlined its rationale for the move, which revolves around the expected drop in CO2 emissions on SW Amazon Conqueror’s main engines. The 2015-built seismic acquisition winterized and arctic operations ready vessel, which comes with a length of 126 meters and a breadth of 32 meters, has a gross tonnage of 21,195.

Shearwater is anticipating an annual fuel reduction of up to 1.5% and CO2 emissions curbs of 600 tons, given that the new turbocharger components and a camshaft design are expected to optimize the combustion process to boost engine fuel performance on the modern, high-end streamer vessel.

The Norwegian player claims to be the first company to install this new engine technology, developed by Wärtsilä and Accelleron, to provide operational and environmental benefits. This is not the only initiative the firm has decided to pursue to bring its sustainability goals to life.

“Our operations generate emissions through our offshore and land operations and the biggest contributor, by far, is our vessel operations. Our business model and strategy help energy companies to provide affordable, accessible and reliable energy for all,” explained Shearwater.

While the firm has set a target to slash its Scope 1 emission by 35% compared to the 2019 level, its longer-term targets are aligned with the revised decarbonization strategy, which the International Maritime Organization (IMO) disclosed in 2023, to reach a net zero greenhouse gas (GHG) emissions for the maritime industry by or around 2050. 

“Implementing a circular economy to reduce our environmental impact is a key theme on our ESG strategy. We include circular economy on our R&D division and production facilities. We follow international conventions for recycling and use facilities which comply with the 2009 Hong Kong International Convention for the Safe and Environmentally Sound Recycling of ships,” the firm elaborated to show its commitment to sustainability.

Shearwater agrees with the need to foster regional and international cooperation and partnerships by sharing knowledge, expertise, and financial resources to support the achievement of the UN sustainable development goals (SDG), thus, the firm is conducting its business in line with this.

On a mission to bolster the energy transition sphere, the company joined hands with Ireland-based XOCEAN to provide integrated data solutions to the carbon capture and storage (CCS) and offshore wind markets.

Shearwater GeoServices recently won a contract extension for its deepwater ocean bottom node (OBN) survey off the coast of India, which follows a survey deal with ONGC for an ocean bottom node survey expected to be carried out with the SW Tasman vessel.