Collaboration 2 companies
First autonomous container ship in the making
Norwegian companies Yara and Kongsberg have teamed up to develop an autonomous container ship with electric motors. This will also be the world's first autonomous container ship.
The vessel will be named YARA Birkeland and will link Yara's fertilizer plant in Porsgrunn to the nearby ports of Brevik and Larvik. The container ship will also be a lot less polluting. Finally, it will save 40.000 truck journeys through densely populated areas on land.
United Nations Sustainability Goals
The YARA Birkeland will initially operate as a manned vessel. The container ship must be able to be controlled remotely in 2019. Ultimately, the ship will have to sail fully autonomously in 2020.
The zero-emission vessel is, according to the companies, a game-changer for maritime transport and will contribute to the sustainability goals of the United Nations. 'It is a logical step for an international fertilizer company like Yara to invest in this ship. We are on a mission to feed the world and protect the planet," said Yara CEO Svein Tore Holsether. 'We are proud that we can work together with Kongsberg to realize this ship and make it operable.'
'By moving freight transport from land to sea, the YARA Birkeland will make an enormous contribution to achieving national and international environmental goals. The new concept is beyond a big step forward in terms of limiting overseas transport in general," said Geir Håøy, CEO of Kongsberg.
Overland transport unnecessary
The new autonomous container ship will make a large part of land transport superfluous. Holsether: 'It now takes more than 100 diesel truck journeys every day to transport production from the Polsgrunn plant to the ports in Brevik and Larvik. From that location, the products are sent to customers all over the world. With this autonomous and battery-operated container ship we move the transport from the road to the sea. In this way we reduce noise pollution, we reduce the emission of particulate matter, NOx and CO2 and we improve safety on local roads.'
New technologies
Kongsberg is responsible for the development and delivery of all key technologies on the YARA Birkeland. This includes sensors, the integration of technology for remote operations, electric sailing and the control systems for, among other things, the batteries and propulsion.
Kongsberg's current control and monitoring systems are already capable of providing technology for unmanned operations. 'Developing systems for autonomous operations is a natural step for Kongsberg. We have been developing and integrating advanced sensors and control and communication systems in all kinds of areas within the shipping industry for decades. The YARA Birkeland will become the benchmark for the application of innovative maritime technology for a more efficient and environmentally friendly ship transport,” said Håøy.
An autonomous ferry will also be sailing in Norway in six months.
From 2020, the ship must sail fully autonomously
Kimberly Baker
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