Nippon Paint Marine has announced that 2,557 vessels using its hull coating technologies have been registered on the RightShip platform, a system that evaluates how technology and innovation contribute to a safer and more sustainable shipping industry. The registered vessels are coated with a range of Nippon Paint Marine products, including the biocide-free AQUATERRAS, as well as FASTAR and A-LF Sea systems.

Among the vessels recorded in the database is an 81,000 DWT bulk carrier coated with FASTAR XI, a self-polishing, self-smoothing antifouling paint that employs nanodomain technology to provide strong antifouling performance while minimizing environmental impact. According to the platform data, FASTAR delivered a 2.5% reduction in required propulsion power across the vessel's operating profile, enabling the vessel's GHG rating to improve from C to B+ while also yielding cost efficiencies.

Additionally, RightShip confirmed that a 324,000 DWT ore carrier achieved a 5.94% reduction in required propulsion power after being coated with FASTAR XI, supporting the vessel's A+ GHG rating. These outcomes demonstrate that Nippon Paint Marine's hull coating solutions produce measurable efficiency gains across multiple vessel types and operating conditions, offering shipowners and operators predictable and verifiable results. RightShip's GHG ratings are widely used by charterers, ports, and financial institutions as part of vessel screening and sustainability due diligence, meaning rating improvements can carry direct commercial relevance beyond regulatory reporting.

With owners and operators placing growing emphasis on emissions performance and sustainability, transparent and reliable data has become a critical factor in hull coating investment decisions. The IMO's Carbon Intensity Indicator (CII) framework, in effect since 2023, requires vessels to be rated annually from A to E based on operational carbon intensity, creating a regulatory driver for hull and propeller efficiency measures that can be deployed without major capital expenditure or drydocking disruption. Against this backdrop, Nippon Paint Marine has transformed its customer support model by expanding its global technical support network and enhancing its data and performance analysis capabilities. The company has also continued investing in research and development for sustainable technologies and strengthening cross-team collaboration to improve overall performance.

Collaboration with customers has been central to Nippon Paint Marine's efforts to improve data gathering and performance validation. Wah Kwong Maritime, a customer of 20 years, has deepened its relationship with the coatings provider over the last two years through a more collaborative, data-driven approach. Wah Kwong Maritime now has five vessels using Nippon Paint Marine hull coatings registered on the RightShip platform.

Wah Kwong Maritime stated: "Our decision to specify Nippon Paint Marine across our fleet has delivered clear operational and environmental benefits. The advanced FASTAR performance maintained hull efficiency longer, which directly reduced fuel consumption and helped us improve our RightShip GHG rating. With their reliable technical support and consistent product quality, we have been able to meet our decarbonisation targets without disrupting our trading schedule."

Felicia Teoh, Marketing Division at Nippon Paint Marine, commented: "The maritime industry is moving towards a lower emission future. It is a challenge we discuss frequently with our customers and is an important focus for our research and development teams. Working with our partners to gather data provides evidence for the efficacy of our coatings and means we can help shipowners deliver more sustainable operations."

Nippon Paint Marine's strategic partnership with RightShip's Zero Harm Innovations Program supports the company's commitment to advancing innovation in decarbonisation and vessel efficiency, as well as promoting transparent sustainability reporting across the maritime sector. Since their introduction, Nippon Paint Marine's low-friction and sustainable hull coatings have helped customer vessels achieve more than 45 million tonnes of CO2 emissions savings.

Source: Nippon Paint Marine via Hellenic Shipping News