VESSEL REVIEW | River Drone 1 – Dutch operator places remote-controlled cargo vessels into service

Netherlands-based shipping company Naval Inland Navigation has begun operating a fleet of 10 remotely-controlled cargo vessels to serve the Belgian port of Antwerp.

Capable of transporting both dry and containerised cargo, the 106-metre-long River Drone 1 and its nine near-identical sisters were built by Dutch shipyard Rensen Driessen. Final outfitting was undertaken at the facilities of compatriot company Asto Shipyard.

The vessels are notable for their technology that allows these to be operated even without personnel on board. Naval Inland Navigation said it developed the River Drone fleet to address the issues of crew shortages and energy efficiency requirements. Geert Van Overloop, a project manager at Naval Inland Navigation, said that while remote control technology for ships is not new in Belgium, this is the first time that such technology is being implemented on a larger scale in European waterways.

All navigational tasks, including navigation and steering, manoeuvring, lock passages, mooring and unmooring, communication with other vessels and on-shore authorities via VHF, communication with onboard crew and people on shore (via handheld radio or megaphone/intercom) is carried out by an onshore operator in a remote onshore control centre. The on-shore operator is a fully licensed captain, in accordance with Central Commission for the Navigation of the Rhine (CCNR) regulations covering onboard personnel. The remote control setup was supplied by technology company Seafar.

The vessels are also equipped with hybrid electric propulsion and can even be configured to run on hydrogen in the future, allowing operations to be undertaken with reduced carbon emissions. A power management system from Werkina is also fitted on each vessel.

Each vessel’s operating profile will also entail having a solitary human crewmember on board to supervise operations, though actual control will still be done entirely via the shore-based command centre. To provide the shore-based controller with the situational awareness needed for sailing through inland waters, each vessel is fitted with two radars, 4G and 5G antennas, and VHF radios.

Over the 4G/5G connection, a full set of sensory data is supplied to the shore control centre with data from 13 cameras (including night vision cameras and those with infrared imaging), five onboard lidars, multiple onboard microphones, and two radar antennas. All data are transferred in real-time to the control centre, where the operator has full view of the vessel, including data from the onboard radar, pilot system, steering indicator, fathometer, VHF/intercom, AIS, ECDIS, and compass.

Naval Inland Navigation said the data will provide the operator with a full view and information allowing safe navigation identical to navigation on board. All data received are constantly logged, and logging data are stored/kept for later retrieval and analysis.

Naval Inland Navigation will offer the 10 River Drones for transport orders or as a time- or travel-charter through different operators. All 10 of the vessels will sail under the Belgian flag and are scheduled to be in operation by October of this year.

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