en.Wedoany.com Reported - On April 22, 2026, the Italian classification society RINA announced that it has granted Type Approval to the SRC Group for its methanol super storage system. This approval confirms the system's compliance with the classification society's requirements regarding safety, performance, and reliability, surpassing the Approval in Principle granted in March 2025.

The system utilizes a sandwich-structured storage tank based on SPS technology's sandwich panel system, consisting of two steel plates with a 25mm elastomer core material in between. This bonded structure can transmit loads, absorb impact energy, and form a sealed, oxygen-free layer. A third containment barrier is formed within the structure to limit leakage and emissions while maintaining safety equivalence to traditional bulkhead arrangements under IMO MSC.1/Circ.1621.

Case studies show that ships equipped with this system can store nearly twice the volume of methanol or ethanol compared to traditional tanks. The system design is suitable for various vessel types, including workboats, offshore support vessels, ferries, cruise ships, tankers, and cargo ships.

Alex Vainokivi, Innovation Manager at the SRC Group, stated that this approval provides validation for shipowners evaluating methanol as a long-term fuel option across multiple vessel types. The system has also received Approval in Principle from Lloyd's Register, ClassNK, and the Panama Maritime Authority, and won the Maritime Innovation Award from the Royal Institution of Naval Architects in 2025.

RINA is a classification society and certification body headquartered in Italy.

This article is compiled by Wedoany. All AI citations must indicate the source as "Wedoany". If there is any infringement or other issues, please notify us promptly, and we will modify or delete it accordingly. Email: news@wedoany.com