what about the “Tesla Ship” project? is this for real?https://electrek.co/2018/01/12/large-tesla-ships-all-electric-barges/
China is really getting in on the act, with some big actors in play:
Don’t know if the X-Bow indicate that Ulstein will be involved.
So Maersk is not interested in developing autonomous mega container ship, at least not in the foreseeable future:
http://gcaptain.com/maersk-ceo-on-unmanned-ships-not-in-my-lifetime/?goal=0_f50174ef03-d310b56ec4-169863069&mc_cid=d310b56ec4&mc_eid=4674ba0fbe
I tend to agree. We are not going to see that type and size of autonomous ships for a long time to come. To get the rules changed and the economical advantage to kick in for large ships will take years.
But that the first Autonomous ferries, coasters and short sea ships are likely to be around already early next decade, with the first autonomous ocean crossings to follow in the next one, is a near certainty.
I received this invitation today:
I will not be going, but if any gcaptain forum members should be interested, feel free to contact as above
While not exactly ships, SpaceX drone ships are autonomous, unmanned, and self propelled DP vessels part of the time. (They are towed out to recover and towed back to port.) So I wonder, are they still barges or boats/ships?
How “green” is it possible to be?
The over 100 year old Bark Statsraad Lehmkuhl will be equipped with battery packs to make it able operate totally without any emission, even when the wind don’t blow:
When at home in Bergen they can charge the batteries with hydro power from the new shore power supply system there, but I presume they have to use their diesel driven generators to re-charge when at sea.
Norway is probably developing new sails with built-in solar panels to recharge the batteries.
It is totally feasible, but not sure if it is economical due to the low effect and wear and tear on a ship like the S.L.:
An article in MarineLink discussing future fuels to be used on Cruise ships and others, their merits and drawbacks:
Scottland is funding a project to study the feasibility of building a Hydrogen powered ferry for the Western Isles:
https://www.marineinsight.com/shipping-news/scottish-government-funds-study-developing-hydrogen-powered-ferry-service/
The claim that it will be the first sea-going hydrogen ferry can be disputed, depending on whether there will be one serving routes in Rogaland, Norway first:
https://www.governmenteuropa.eu/green-hydrogen-norway-green-stat/79535/
Fiskerstrand may have a lead on developing the first one though:
https://www.sdir.no/en/news/news-from-the-nma/breaking-new-ground-in-hydrogen-ferry-project/
Europe is forging ahead with development of electric shipping and Norway is in the forefront of this development:
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I tend to agree with this article in Splash 24/7 today:
LNG is indeed only a stop gap solution, since it is still a carbon based fuel that emits CO2 when burnt.
I have said it before; Hydrogen produced with renewable energy is the way forward for shipping.
Smart engines for smart ships:
https://www.hellenicshippingnews.com/the-smart-engine-in-the-smart-ship-wingd-and-hhi-collaborate-to-deliver-increased-intelligence-to-the-marine-industry/
Now all we need are smart Engineers to operate the smart engines on the smart ships in a smart way, then we can see a smart future for smart shipowners.
PS> Smart Captains will not be needed, only someone to take the blame when things go wrong.
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LPG can produce huge amount of C02 in its production as well, nobody ever talks about that
The view of the Autonomous ships by the Director General of Danish Maritime Authorities appeared in USCG Proceedings Magazine, May-Dec. 2017:
Is this an alternative Marine Fuel of the future??:
Back to sail?:
The dangers associated with lithium-ion batteries on ships is becoming an urgent issue.
DNV-GL is trying to highlight the dangers and come up with rules and guidelines for safe handling of large battery banks on board vessels of all kinds:
The boss of ABS weigh in on the future of shipping:
Hopefully something the dockers union (ILS) also understand:
http://www.jms-logistics.com/en/global/east-coast-dockers-employers-resume-talks-stalled-december
Shipping is 30-500 years behind the technology curve: