Hempel Signs 3-Year Hull Coatings Deal with Maersk

Hempel and Maersk Extend Hull Performance Partnership

Hempel A/S has entered into a three-year global agreement with A.P. Moller - Maersk covering a large portion of the shipping giant’s dry docking schedule from 2026 through 2028. According to a report by The Maritime Executive, based on a Hempel press release, the deal builds on more than ten years of cooperation between the two companies and gives Hempel a significant share of Maersk’s upcoming dry dockings.

A Decade of Collaboration on Coating Performance

The agreement centers on Hempel’s silicone-based hull coating technology, which the companies say has a documented track record of in-service performance, including fuel-efficiency gains, resistance to fouling, and durable hull protection. Malgorzata Kolton, Executive Vice President and Head of Marine at Hempel, described Maersk as a benchmark for operational excellence and decarbonisation in the industry, and said the new contract reflects trust built through consistent performance and long-term results.

Beyond the supply of coatings, the two firms plan to deepen their cooperation through joint initiatives aimed at dry docking efficiency and ongoing hull-performance monitoring while vessels are in service. Kristian Brauner, Head of Fleet Operations at Maersk, noted that hull performance plays a meaningful role in fuel efficiency and the company’s emissions-reduction goals, and that the agreement allows continued innovation in optimising performance across the fleet.

Hempaguard’s Track Record

Hull condition is a well-established driver of vessel fuel consumption, emissions, and running costs, which is why premium coatings have become a focal point of fleet decarbonisation strategies. Hempel points to its Hempaguard silicone range, launched in 2013 and applied more than 6,000 times since, as central to this agreement. Using its own performance calculations validated against DNV methodology, Hempel estimates that these applications have collectively helped customers avoid roughly 43.4 million tonnes of CO2 compared with conventional coating benchmarks. The company is careful to note that actual savings differ by vessel type, trading pattern, operating speed, hull condition, and maintenance regime.

What This Means for Fleet Managers and Surveyors

For ship owners and technical managers, multi-year coatings agreements of this kind signal a broader industry shift toward treating hull performance as a managed, data-driven asset rather than a one-off maintenance decision made at each dry dock. Locking in a coating supplier across an entire dry dock cycle can bring consistency in application standards and warranty terms, but it also raises the stakes on getting pre-dry dock condition assessments right. Accurate documentation of existing hull condition, fouling levels, and coating breakdown before each dry docking becomes more important when a fleet-wide programme is riding on consistent performance data across dozens of vessels over several years.

This is where independent condition surveys and inspections add real value. Verifying hull and coating condition ahead of dry dock, and confirming application quality and film thickness afterward, gives owners and charterers an objective baseline to measure whether the promised fuel-efficiency and emissions benefits are actually being realised in service. As coating suppliers and operators increasingly frame their partnerships around performance guarantees and decarbonisation metrics, third-party verification of the underlying hull condition data will likely become a more routine part of due diligence, both for owners tracking return on their dry dock investment and for charterers assessing a vessel’s operational efficiency claims.

Looking Ahead

While the commercial terms of the agreement were not disclosed, the scale of Maersk’s fleet and the multi-year scope of the contract make this one of the more notable hull coatings agreements in recent memory. As dry docking programmes proceed through 2028, the industry will likely be watching for further data on how these coatings perform under real-world operating conditions across such a large and diverse fleet.

Reviewed by Ibrahim Halil Ceylan, Marine Surveyor at Apeks Marine.