Subsea Industries Reviews Ecolock’s 15-Year Offshore Service Record

A Manufacturer’s Review of Earlier Service Records

Subsea Industries, the manufacturer of the Ecolock hull coating, published a review of the coating’s service record via The Maritime Executive on 2 November 2026. The cases it describes date from earlier years, including the Sea-Launch Odyssey programme, the Caribbean FLNG barge built in 2014 and the Eemshaven FSRU coated in 2015. Subsea Industries says the coating has accumulated 15 years of in-service use on offshore assets, including oil and gas production and storage units and offshore renewable-energy structures.

The review is the manufacturer’s own account. Apeks Marine has not independently inspected the vessels or verified the performance figures below; every performance, warranty, classification and environmental claim in this article comes from Subsea Industries or the customers it quotes.

The Sea-Launch Odyssey: Extreme Operating Cycles

Subsea Industries cites the Sea-Launch Odyssey, a large self-propelled semi-submersible converted into a rocket-launch platform. The vessel spent long periods laid up in port, then made rapid transits to the Equator for launches before returning to port. Fouling built up during lay-up. The vessel needed a clean hull for fuel economy on the equatorial run, but its original antifouling system could not withstand in-water cleaning in port.

According to the manufacturer’s account, senior superintendent Jan Bakke worked out with class a way to extend the drydocking interval to 15 years. The hull coating therefore had to provide corrosion protection and cleanable biofouling control for that period without damage from repeated cleaning. Bakke is quoted as saying that cleaning a conventional antifouling system starts the clock toward the next docking. Subsea Industries says Ecolock met three requirements: 15-year corrosion protection without drydocking, tolerance for hull cleaning, and an environmentally safe formulation that allowed cathodic protection systems to be removed.

EXMAR’s FLNG and FSRU Experience

The manufacturer says EXMAR adopted Ecolock early for offshore units, applying it to the Caribbean FLNG barge and the Eemshaven FSRU. EXMAR Project Manager Frederick Van Nuffel is quoted as saying EXMAR sought a coating that would prevent corrosion of the underwater hull for at least 15 years, and that EXMAR found Ecolock abrasion-resistant enough for the barge’s rubber fender areas.

According to Subsea Industries, the Caribbean FLNG, renamed Tango, entered drydock in Dubai after nine years on station and the hull coating was found in excellent condition. The Eemshaven FSRU, coated in 2015 at the same Wison yard in China, entered drydock seven years later for rechartering. The manufacturer reports that the hull was in near-perfect condition and needed only touch-ups for minor mechanical damage, and that the unit has now gone 11 years without recoating.

Why the Manufacturer Says FSU/FSRU Conversions Choose Ecolock

The review says LNG operators increasingly buy in-service carriers and convert them into static FSUs or FSRUs that remain moored for decades, and that several of these conversions specified Ecolock for the underwater hull and, in some cases, up to the gunwale. The reasons Subsea Industries gives are its own warranty terms (20 years with two coats, 35 years with three), suitability for projects with 25- to 40-year design lives without drydocking, and in-water hull cleaning before long ocean crossings. The manufacturer says such cleaning reduces fuel penalties and the risk of transferring invasive species.

Subsea Industries also says the coating’s non-toxic composition was a factor in a British Columbia LNG project, where 1st Nation landowners required a coating that would not risk contaminating local sediment. On cathodic protection, the manufacturer says many customers have reported that sacrificial anodes or ICCP systems are not needed where Ecolock is used, and that ABS recently validated this. Apeks Marine has not seen the ABS document. According to the manufacturer, applicators use two or three layers directly on bare steel, with a minimum three-hour overcoat window and no stated maximum.

A Floating Pool as an Unusual Case Study

The review also describes the + POOL project in New York’s Hudson River, a 320-ton floating steel structure that houses a water-filtering public swimming pool. Subsea Industries says the underwater hull and exterior received two layers of Ecolock, chosen for durability, non-toxicity, cleanability and the option of a custom colour.

What This Means for Owners and Managers

The case histories show how a manufacturer presents inspection results from years after application. They are not an independent test. Owners considering longer drydocking intervals or the removal of cathodic protection systems should ask for the underlying drydock reports and class documents, and should have hull-condition surveys carried out by a party with no commercial stake in the coating choice.