Proff Kulde provides eco-friendly cooling system for smaller fishing boats

Most commercial fishing boats are less than 30 m long. Traditionally, these vessels have used ice or slurry ice to cool the catch to the required transport and storage temperature. They often must cut short their time at sea to maintain temperature control.

RSW systems maintain the required temperature, allowing vessels to remain at sea longer. However, they have traditionally used toxic refrigerants such as Freon or ammonia. Freon is very harmful to the environment, highly taxed and being phased out in most countries.

Ammonia, meanwhile, is toxic in small quantities and highly flammable, so ammonia RSW systems must be housed in an explosion-proof room. They are often too large to install on smaller vessels without rebuild. The systems also require supervision from technical staff, have high maintenance costs and are susceptible to evaporator freeze.

Proff Kulde uses CO₂ as the refrigerant in its CO₂PRO RSW plant, as it is affordable, non-toxic in moderate amounts, presents no fire danger and has excellent performance ratings.

The plant features a seawater-cooled onboard gas cooler complete with control systems, automatic compressor, receiver, valves and filter. It also features the company’s unique refrigerant evaporator injection system, which enables maintenance of seawater temperatures down to 1 °C between seawater temperature out of the evaporator and the freezing point, with no risk of evaporator freeze.

The plant is easy to operate via a touch screen, with the possibility of remote control via internet.

The CO₂PRO RSW plant enables fishing boats to remain at sea longer, allowing them to fish to capacity and save time and fuel. Because it is CO₂-based, the system offers significant environmental and financial benefits compared with Freon and ammonia-based RSW systems. It is also easy to maintain and does not require dedicated technical staff.

Moreover, the plant can be supplied as individual components which fit through a 600 mm x 600 mm hatch for customised installation on board. Proff Kulde adapts the project to each vessel, eliminating the need for costly rebuilding of electrical or piping systems, or for making an opening to insert the unit. The compact design also allows for installation in the forepeak of the vessel, saving storage space.

There are more than 2.5 million small, motorised fishing boats under 12 m globally, according to the UN Food and Agriculture Organization. With growing demand for fuel and time efficiency in the fisheries industry, RSW systems for smaller vessels have considerable market potential.

The CO₂PRO RSW plant has been installed on six Norwegian vessels. Four new systems are confirmed for delivery in Norway in 2020, and Proff Kulde is seeking to enter the international market.