Autonomous vessels in short sea shipping and inland waterways

Expected Outcome

Project outputs and results are expected to contribute to all the following expected outcomes:

1. Demonstration of remote-control operation of vessels without crew, controlled remotely (degree three[1]).
2. Development of concepts for fully autonomous ship where the operating system on the vessel is able to make decisions and determine actions by itself (degree four[2]).
3. Strengthen market confidence in the integration of remote and automated navigation in ship types and services that may see a shortage of workforce in the next decade.
4. Contribute to the EU Port Strategy and the EU Industrial Waterborne Strategy, as well as the EU AI Continent Action Plan[3] and the upcoming EU Apply AI Strategy.

Scope

Maritime Autonomous Surface Ships (MASS) have been the focus for several projects both with EU-funding and individual countries but a major breakthrough leading to extensive deployment and widespread commercial maturity are still not achieved. Autonomous vessels can offer safer and more efficient operations and cost savings. New skills and training needed for MASS is a critical issue to ensure safe operations.

Projects are expected to address all the following aspects:

1. Demonstration of two different remotely controlled vessels without seafarers on board, considering the most promising areas of operation and types of ships towards market adoption. The demonstration should be performed in at least one short-sea shipping vessel.
2. Demonstration of two different fully autonomous operation in at least one inland waterway vessel.
3. Demonstrations and concept studies should address the whole navigation voyage, including port calling, mooring, and berthing, potential offshore charging solutions, and passing through locks in all weather conditions[4].
4. Demonstrations should also include aspects for predictive maintenance, self-diagnostic systems to ensure optimal functioning of the vessel’s equipment and structure
5. Identify and address implementation bottlenecks for relevant ship types, such as data quality and lack of infrastructure related to waterborne transport. Map infrastructure and investment needs for extensive roll-out for automated ships operations
6. Appropriate steps to ensure sufficient cyber risk management of the systems and infrastructure used when conducting trials[5].
7. Address standardization needs and possible safeguards to secure data-integrity and cyber security. Provide recommendations to the relevant regulatory bodies.
8. Address the risk of unlawful data transfer to third-countries outside the borders of the EU/EEA and the impacts it could have on EU fleets.
9. Integrate ongoing legal processes at EU level and at the IMO related to inland automated vessels and MASS i.e., MASS Code, Search&Rescue and Remote Operating Centres.
10. Address safety considerations (using EMSA’s Risk Based Assessment Methodology) and upskilling of port and vessel operators.
11. Assess the net carbon impact of autonomous vessels, taking into account the devices and data processing needed to operate them and potential emissions saved, and ensure no significant harm to biodiversity. If applicable, the calculation method to assess the net impact of digital solutions from the European Green Digital Coalition (EGDC) could be used.
12. Projects should exceed outcomes of previous or on-going projects in relevant ship types.
13. Model the economic viability of the developed solutions, considering initial investment, operational savings, maintenance costs, and potential financial incentives, to assess the economic feasibility while also facilitating decision-making in the design process. All while considering the societal aspects of future shortening workforce.

Proposals are expected to explain the contribution of their objectives, results, IP management and exploitation strategy to the EU added value creation and strategic autonomy throughout the supply and value chain, including competitiveness of the EU waterborne industry, enhancement of the EU’s R&I capacity, technological know-how capabilities and human capital, and resilience of the EU industrial and manufacturing base. Proposals are encouraged to prioritise shipyards, equipment manufacturers and providers located and/or manufacturing in the EU and EEA.

Technology Readiness Level - Technology readiness level expected from completed projects

Activities are expected to achieve TRL 7 by the end of the project - see General Annex B. Activities may start at any TRL.

[1] 100th session of IMO’s Maritime Safety Committee (MSC 100): Remotely controlled ship without seafarers on board: The ship is controlled and operated from another location. There are no seafarers on board.

For inland navigation purposes, the demonstration should allow for demonstration on the conditions described for degree 3 of automation as described before, as well as, achieving degree 3 and aiming for degree 4 of automation under the 2022 CCNR Explanatory note related to the international definition of levels of automation in inland navigation - https://www.ccr-zkr.org/files/documents/AutomatisationNav/Note_explicative_en.pdf

[2] 100th session of IMO’s Maritime Safety Committee (MSC 100): Fully autonomous ship: The operating system of the ship is able to make decisions and determine actions by itself.

For inland navigation purposes, the demonstration should allow for demonstration on the conditions described for degree 4 and aiming for degree 5 of automation under the 2022 CCNR Explanatory note related to the international definition of levels of automation in inland navigation - https://www.ccr-zkr.org/files/documents/AutomatisationNav/Note_explicative_en.pdf

[3] COM(2025)165

[4] Proposals should build upon the results of HE projects DYNAPORT and MISSION on port call optimisation.

[5] Proposals should build upon the results of HE projects AUTOFLEX and FOREMAST, and just starting WARRANT and D-NAVIO.