Spliethoff secures 110 million euro scrubber loan

Dutch multipurpose vessel operator Spliethoff has secured a 110 million euro loan agreement with ING and the European Investment Bank for the retrofitting of 42 vessels of its fleet with exhaust gas cleaning systems and ballast water management systems.

The loan of the European Investment Bank will be supported by the European Fund for Strategic Investments (EFSI) as well as the Connecting Europe Facility, also known as CEF.

The loan is part of Green Shipping partnership worth 300 million euro between ING and the European Investment Bank,  which was signed in 2018 and is aimed at supporting sponsors of green and sustainable projects in the maritime transport sector with advantageous financial terms.

The EIB will contribute 49.5 million euro to a 110.4 million euro ING Bank arranged facility to finance the installation of exhaust gas cleaning systems and ballast water management systems on 42 vessels for Spliethoff. In specific 17 vessels will be retrofitted with both exhaust gas cleaning systems and ballast water management systems, 5 vessels with exhaust gas cleaning systems and 20 vessels with ballast water management systems.

The retrofitted vessels will operate with significantly reduced emissions of sulphur oxide (SOx) and particulate matter pollutants and prevent the seaborne transfer of invasive species and diseases in ballast water.

“Our joint programme with ING shows that greening the transport sector makes business sense, other than just being important for the environment. The support from the European Commission helps to make the maritime transport sector easier to finance for the Bank, a good example of cross-European teamwork”, says EIB Vice-President Vazil Hudak.

Michel Fransen, CFO of the Spliethoff Group says: “We have been installing scrubbers on our fleet since 2013 and are very happy with the results so far. Scrubbers are a very environmentally friendly solution to comply with the 2020 regulations. LNG or hydrogen may have the potential to become even better alternatives in the future, but only in the longer term. The investment in scrubbers also safeguards the interest of our shareholders against uncertainties in fuel availability and pricing.”