Shih Wei Navigation Co., Ltd.

The Challenge

Established in 1985, Shih Wei Navigation Co., Ltd. is a rapidly expanding shipping owner-operator, engaged in general and dry bulk cargo shipping. The company operates and manages over 50 vessels, with a fleet consisting of Handy, Handymax, Supramax, Ultramax and Panamax ships.

In line with the European Union policy for reducing domestic greenhouse gas emissions, the EU introduced regulation 2015/757 in 2015. Now, with the introduction of the EU Monitoring, Reporting, and Verification (MRV) regulation, the EU has taken proactive steps ahead of the IMO to closely monitor CO2 emissions for most vessels in excess of 5000 gross tons. The EU–MRV requires ships carrying out maritime transport activities to or from EEA ports to monitor and report information including verified data on their CO2 emissions from 1st of January 2018.

Therefore, Shih Wei Navigation needed to find a reliable and efficient way to implement an EU-compliant monitoring, reporting and verification system for its fleet.

“The regulation aims to reduce CO2 emissions from shipping down at least 40% compared to levels in 1990, so as to protect people from the impact of the worsening climate. We, as global citizens, feel that the control measures should be properly observed, so we can contribute our own efforts to the betterment of this grave issue,” said Capt. Len-Mau Huang, DPA at Shih Wei Navigation Co., Ltd.

Considerations

With a focus on ensuring safety, security and environmental performance, Shih Wei Navigation was looking to partner with an MRV service provider. In their search for a partnership, the company had particular standards in mind.

“First, it should be accredited by the EU commission. We looked for demonstration of quality to convince us that the service team is equipped with the best manpower available. We also sought an easy-going program set up to implement the mission of monitoring, reporting and verification of CO2. We wanted one that included a platform to receive daily reporting from ships, with a mechanism to alert any gap or discrepancy if it was found in the ship’s report,” said Capt. Huang.

Solution

“After thorough evaluation of several monitoring and reporting tools, we chose StormGeo,” said Capt. Huang. StormGeo's shipping division has been collecting data, monitoring data and reporting data on fuel consumption and emissions for over twenty years. StormGeo now assists Shih Wei Navigation every step of the way in monitoring, collecting and submitting their data.

In partnering with StormGeo, an EU MRV certified supplier, Shih Wei Navigation Co., Ltd. can now ensure that it operates in full compliance with EU MRV regulations. The company uses StormGeo’s decision support system, FleetDSS-MRV, which provides consumption analysis, MRV compliance, comprehensive alarms, and a dynamic fleet map.

FleetDSS-MRV provides a tool to help create monitoring plans, and view leg-by-leg voyage reports, as well as annual emissions reports. In addition, the required reports are sent directly to a leading independent verification entity, so that Shih Wei Navigation’s MRV needs are completely handled full circle.

StormGeo has also included tools to understand fuel consumption as it relates to performance speed, giving Shih Wei Navigation insight into their fleet beyond the MRV regulations. “In choosing this service, we not only aimed to fulfill all the MRV requirements, we also wanted effective software to facilitate the monitoring of ship performance on a daily basis, with detailed weather information including wind force and direction, wave and swell, current and typhoon weather. StormGeo’s DRS2 combined in the FleetDSS platform exemplified our requirements,” added Capt. Huang.

Benefits

For Shih Wei Navigation, the partnership with StormGeo has proved valuable in providing comprehensive and cost-effective solutions to compliance with MRV regulations. StormGeo offers added value by providing data quality control, routinely monitored reports through communication with the ship Captain on correct reporting, and through producing annual reports based on all relevant voyages over the course of the reporting year.

In addition to ensuring MRV compliance, Fleet DSS-MRV offers Shih Wei Navigation richer insights into the safety and performance of their fleet.

StormGeo’s monitoring and reporting tools, as well as their map-based weather forecasts allow us to closely monitor our fleet and manage potential weather risk,” said Capt. Huang.

“The StormGeo work team has impressed us with their favorable working style. They are extremely diligent, and offer a detailed service system and program. During the demonstration they gave us, their friendly manner and instructional skills greatly solidified our confidence in the partnership. We feel that if we left StormGeo, we’d be losing out. We look forward to a good and lasting partnership,” Capt. Huang concluded.