DUBAI, 16th February, 2026 (WAM) –– Drydocks World, a DP World company, has joined the Maritime Emissions Reduction Centre (MERC), expanding the consortium’s technical capabilities and industry collaboration.
The agreement brings one of the world’s leading ship repair and retrofit facilities into the Athens-based non-profit industry collaboration, which was co-established by the Lloyd’s Register Maritime Decarbonisation Hub and leading shipowners Capital Group, Navios Maritime Partners, Neda Maritime Agency, Star Bulk and Thenamaris (Ships Management) Inc., with enabling support from Lloyd’s Register.
The Maritime Emissions Reduction Centre (MERC) focuses on exploring practical decarbonisation and emissions reduction solutions for the maritime sector, bringing together technical expertise, operational insight and industry collaboration to support the transition toward lower carbon shipping.
Drydocks World’s long-standing reputation for delivering complex engineering projects, coupled with its experience in integrating advanced technologies on board operating vessels, will be central to MERC’s next phase of collaborative work. With shipyards playing an increasingly important role in the integration of energy efficiency systems, Drydocks World’s expertise is expected to influence how technologies are assessed, prioritised and deployed across different vessel types.
Nikos Kakalis, MERC Managing Director, said: “Drydocks World’s involvement provides an essential layer of applied engineering experience that complements MERC’s technical and analytical work. The organisation brings the kind of practical insight that is only gained through decades of delivering major retrofit projects. This expertise will help us understand not only what is technically possible, but what can be delivered efficiently and safely in a real shipyard environment.
That combination of deep engineering knowledge and hands-on experience will help MERC ensure that emerging technologies can be installed safely, efficiently and in a commercially viable way.”
Drydocks World joins MERC at a time of intensified research and development activity, including deeper studies into emerging efficiency technologies, practical integration of advanced systems on existing vessels, and expanded work in hydrodynamics, wind-assisted propulsion, auxiliary power alternatives and data-driven optimisation.
Captain Rado Antolovic, PhD, CEO of Drydocks World, said: “Joining MERC allows us to contribute our engineering and retrofit experience to a collaborative effort that is focused on solutions the industry can actually implement. The challenges of decarbonising the existing fleet require practical, evidence-based approaches, and we see real value in working alongside MERC’s partners to help shape technologies and integration strategies that will work across different vessel types.”
As a Centre Member, Drydocks World provides essential yard-level insight to help ensure solutions are technically feasible, scalable and deliverable within real-world operational and drydocking constraints – while aligning retrofit and conversion capabilities with evolving regulatory and shipowner requirements, particularly within Europe.
NEWS AND PICTURE COURTESY: WAM NEWS (www.wam.ae)
