KBAL - Knutsen Ballast Water

What KBAL - Knutsen Ballast Water does

Knutsen Ballast Water AS (KBAL) is a Norwegian maritime technology company founded in 2009 and headquartered in Haugesund, Norway, operating as a wholly-owned subsidiary of the Knutsen Group shipping conglomerate. KBAL designs and sells ballast water treatment systems (BWTS) for commercial vessels, with a product portfolio spanning five flow-rate tiers from the KBAL400 (400 m3/h) to the KBAL3000 (3000 m3/h), each available in stand-alone, skid-mounted, or containerized plug-and-play configurations. The company's core technology is a patented Pressure-Vacuum (PV) reactor combined with a secondary UV chamber, which delivers filter-free and chemical-free ballast water treatment — the first BWTS to achieve both IMO and USCG type approval under the revised G8 standard on that basis, and the first UV-based BWTS approved for one-pass treatment. Systems are also offered with IECEx certification for hazardous zones and have been approved by multiple classification societies.

KBAL generates revenue primarily through hardware sales of BWTS units to ship owners and shipyards for newbuild installations and retrofits, supplemented by a worldwide 24/7 aftermarket service offering covering spare parts, operational assistance, training, and remote access support. The go-to-market is direct enterprise sales to ship owners combined with channel partnerships at major Asian shipyards — notably Hyundai Samho Heavy Industries, HHI Ulsan, and HSHI Mokpo in South Korea, and multiple major Chinese shipyards where KBAL has established local production in 2024. The customer base is concentrated in shuttle tankers, LNG carriers, and oil/chemical tankers, with a long-running reference deployment in a land-based smolt aquaculture facility demonstrating adjacency into industrial water treatment. The company has 7 employees and is not venture-backed or publicly listed.

Name

KBAL - Knutsen Ballast Water

Legal name

Knutsen Ballast Water AS

Website

https://knutsenballastwater.com

Company type

Private

Founded year

2009

Operating status

Operating

Headcount range

1–10 employees

Short description

KBAL is a Norwegian maritime technology subsidiary of the Knutsen Group that designs, manufactures, and services filter-free, chemical-free ballast water treatment systems based on patented Pressure-Vacuum and UV technology for ship owners, shipyards, and industrial water-treatment customers.

Ownership category

akta.pro rank

Product category

Marine Ballast Water Treatment Systems

NAICS

Measuring, Dispensing, and Other Pumping Equipment Manufacturing (333914)

SIC

Pumps & Pumping Equipment (3561)

akta.pro primary industry

Ballast Water, Bilge & Wastewater Treatment Systems (Environmental/Utility) (IMAJAIAJ)

Keywords

• Ballast water treatment
• Marine BWTS systems
• UV water disinfection
• Filter-free treatment
• Ship environmental equipment

Headquarters

HQ city

Haugesund

HQ country

Norway

HQ region

Europe

Offices3 records

Markets served

GTM type

B2B

Offering type

Hardware or Manufacturing

Cost components

Supply Chain, Technology or R&D, Operations, Personnel, Marketing or Sales

Revenue model

1. Ballast Water Treatment Systems Sales: Sale of hardware ballast water treatment systems including KBAL3000, KBAL2000, KBAL1500, KBAL1200, and KBAL400 models. Systems sold in standalone, skid mounted (plug and play), or containerized configurations. Revenue generated from equipment sales to ship owners and shipyards for newbuild installations and retrofits.
2. Service and Aftermarket Support: Worldwide 24/7 support and service including spare parts, operational assistance, training, and remote access support. Service team can connect directly to vessels anywhere in the world through shipnet.

Pricing tiers

Go-to-market motion2 records

Distribution channels4 records

Marketing channels4 records

Core offering

KBAL designs, manufactures, and sells ballast water treatment systems (BWTS) for commercial ships using patented Pressure-Vacuum (PV) reactor technology combined with UV treatment. The product range covers flow rates from 400 to 3000 m3 per hour (KBAL400, KBAL1200, KBAL1500, KBAL2000, KBAL3000) and is offered in stand-alone, skid-mounted (plug and play), and containerized configurations for newbuild and retrofit installations.

Product overview

KBAL (Knutsen Ballast Water) offers a unified portfolio of filter-less, chemical-free ballast water treatment systems based on patented Pressure-Vacuum (PV) reactor technology combined with UV treatment. The product range consists of five system sizes (KBAL400, KBAL1200, KBAL1500, KBAL2000, KBAL3000) covering flow rates from 400 to 3000 m3 per hour. Each system is available in three configurations: Stand-alone (for machinery space installation), Skid Mounted (plug and play), and Containerized (for deck installation). Systems can be installed in parallel to increase total treatment capacity. The portfolio is distinguished by its lack of filters or chemicals, one-pass treatment capability, and operation in waters with UV transmittance as low as 26%.

Differentiator

Problem solved

Functional benefit

Quantifiable outcome

• 7+ consecutive years of operation at aquaculture facility
• +1 more outcomes

Named customers16 records

Segments4 records

Ideal customer profiles3 records

Technology focussed Yes

API detail

Has API

No

API docs

API detail

Core technology

AI maturity

App detail

Feature6 records

Partnerships

Seven partnerships are on record, tiered core, long-term and secondary.

• Chinese ShipyardscoreChannel Partner/ Reseller/ Distributor · 8 October 2024KBAL has signed contracts with Chinese shipyards for delivery of double KBAL3000 BWTS systems to be installed on newbuild shuttle tankers. Production in China is progressing successfully in collaboration with valued supplier.
• HVL (Høgskolen på Vestlandet)long-termStrategic or Co-development PartnerResearch collaboration with HVL university over the last decade covering a wide variety of research regarding ballast water with focus on UV disinfection and Vacuum technology.
• Classification SocietiescoreStrategic or Co-development PartnerKBAL BWTS has been approved by a number of classification societies to meet the requirements of specific flag states. Multiple classification society type approvals obtained.
• Hyundai Samho Heavy IndustriescoreChannel Partner/ Reseller/ DistributorKorean shipyard for newbuild LNG carrier installations. Multiple vessels including Amaryllis Knutsen, Ignacy Jan Paderewski, and Jozef Pilsudski commissioned at this shipyard.
• Hyundai Heavy Industries (HHI)coreChannel Partner/ Reseller/ DistributorKorean shipyard HHI Ulsan for newbuild LNG vessel installations including Grażyna Gęsicka and other vessels with 2 x KBAL3000 systems.
• Fayard (Denmark)secondaryChannel Partner/ Reseller/ DistributorEuropean shipyard in Denmark for retrofit installations. Successfully installed KBAL1200 on shuttle tanker Siri Knutsen.
• Hyundai Samho Heavy Industries (HSHI)coreChannel Partner/ Reseller/ DistributorHSHI Mokpo facility for LNG carrier newbuild installations including Gordon Waters Knutsen with 2 x KBAL3000 filter-less UV BWT systems.

Scale indicators6 records

Recent moves6 records

Expansion highlights5 records

Direct peers

• Optimarin: Optimarin is a Norway-based BWTS specialist offering UV-based ballast water treatment systems, directly comparable to KBAL as a small/medium specialist competitor with IMO and USCG type approvals serving similar ship owner and shipyard customers.
• OceanSaver (Markleen): OceanSaver, now part of Markleen, offers ballast water treatment systems with type approvals, directly comparable to KBAL as a smaller specialised BWTS competitor in the IMO/USCG-approved segment.
• Techcross (now part of Glosten / associated): Techcross is a South Korea-based BWTS specialist with electrolysis-based systems, comparable to KBAL as an Asia-region competitor serving Korean shipyards such as Hyundai and HHI.
• Hyde Marine: Hyde Marine (a De Nora company) offers the Hyde Guardian BWTS with USCG type approval, directly comparable to KBAL as a specialist BWTS vendor serving the US-tradeable fleet segment.
• BIO-UV Group (BIO-SEA): BIO-UV offers the BIO-SEA line of UV-based ballast water treatment systems, directly competing with KBAL in the UV BWTS segment for commercial vessels with comparable regulatory approvals.

Broad incumbents

• Wärtsilä (Aquarius UV/EC): Wärtsilä offers the Aquarius UV and Aquarius EC ballast water management systems, directly competing with KBAL in the UV-based BWTS segment for newbuild and retrofit installations across LNG, tanker, and bulker segments.
• RWO (Veolia Water Technologies): RWO, part of Veolia, offers ballast water treatment solutions including the CleanBallast system, comparable to KBAL as a BWTS vendor serving commercial shipping customers with type-approved systems.
• Alfa Laval (PureBallast): Alfa Laval is the global market leader in ballast water treatment systems through its PureBallast product line, serving the same maritime customers (ship owners, shipyards) as KBAL. It is a broad incumbent with a much larger service network and broader product portfolio.

Others

• ERMA First:

Emerging players

• Weco (Headway Technology): Headway Technology (WECO) is an emerging Chinese BWTS manufacturer gaining traction in the Asian shipyard market, comparable to KBAL as a UV-based BWTS specialist focused on newbuild installations.

Market position

Strengths5 records

Weaknesses5 records

Competitive moat4 records

Key risks5 records

Key highlights7 records

Customer concentration

• LinkedInlinkedin.com/company/knutsen-ballast-water

Compliance4 records

Revenue estimate

Valuation estimate

Number of profiles

Profiles2 records

Funding overview

Funding rounds

Investors

Funding detail is available on the Subscription and Enterprise plan.Contact sales →

M&A

Investments

M&A and investment is available on the Subscription and Enterprise plan.Contact sales →

Frequently asked questions about KBAL - Knutsen Ballast Water