Crewless Ships – the Possibilities Take Shape

Rødseth opened the debate with strong evidence that semi-autonomous vessels are already operating on coastal services in Norway. “Since spring 2022, the world’s first semi-autonomous container ship has been transporting mineral fertilizer from the Yara production facility in Porsgrunn to the regional export port in Brevik. The vessel is actually autonomous but still operates with a crew of three and is remotely controlled from a control center,” he reported.

“Seafar technology is currently deployed on over forty vessels mostly inland ships, of which a majority are already operating with reduced crew and are remotely controlled,” remarked Holstein

As far as developments in France are concerned van Collie of ZULU Associates gave a summary, “Since May 2024, the French authorities have issued a decree allowing the operation of autonomous ships in French territorial waters. As a designer of such vessels, we are in close talks with the state waterway authority VNF (Voies Navigables de France) to hopefully operate unmanned or partially unmanned ships by next year,” he said.

Members of the audience were curious about the risk of vessel failures and accidents.  Holstein explained that remote control actually increases the levels of operational safety.  Eight-hour shifts for captains onshore are significantly less tiring than the 12-14 hour shifts often required on board.  Rødseth commented on the easing of crew stress levels through automation eases the crew’s burden of a “tedious 30-day straight course across the Pacific,” for instance. 

The full session Connecting Ports #08 is available on YouTube Connecting Ports | Session #8 | Navigating Next: The Path to Autonomous Maritime Transport (youtube.com)

The next session of Connecting Ports will take place on 5 September 2024. It will focus on an urgent industry topic: cybersecurity challenges in ports