By
Alex Smith |
The Fourth International Ship Autonomy and Sustainability Summit will take place on 8 June as part of Nor-Shipping 2023.
The summit, held at Nor-Shipping's newly refurbished Studio NOVA in Lillestrøm, Norway, will focus on the latest technological, business and regulatory developments in ship autonomy. The summit is organised in cooperation with Norwegian Forum for Autonomous Ships and the European Commission’s Directorate General for Transport (DG MOVE).
“The concept of ship autonomy is now maturing,” said Sidsel Norvik, director of Nor-Shipping. “When the idea was launched there were great, and perhaps overly inflated, expectations about a rapid shift, followed by disillusionment when this didn’t materialise. However, we are now seeing commercial applications come to fruition and demonstrate huge potential. We’re at a genuinely exciting stage on the journey, and this summit will explore that – with an up-to-date status of implementation and valuable insights into future applications and possibilities.”
Topics at the summit will include the commercial uses of ship autonomy, how autonomy is viewed by the industry, and an international outlook on competition and cooperation among industry frontrunners. The summit will feature panellists from key countries and regions, including South Korea, Japan, Norway, USA and the European Union. Representatives from large industry actors, such as Kongsberg, Hyundai, Ocean Infinity and NYK Group, will share their knowledge and perspectives too. Several ship operators with concrete projects will also discuss the current and specialised applications of autonomous ship technology.
“This summit is a unique meeting place for practitioners and policymakers,” said Fotini Ioannidou, head of the maritime safety unit at DG MOVE. “It is a vital gathering point for sharing expertise and communicating developments, but also for networking and gaining ‘hands-on’ understanding of autonomy’s enormous potential for our industry.”
Nor-Shipping 2023 will feature six themed exhibition halls across a total of 22,500 square metres of space at the Norges Varemesse facility in Lillestrøm. In addition to the main exhibition and autonomy summit, the event will also feature the first-ever Nor-Shipping Offshore Wind and Offshore Aquaculture Conferences, the second Maritime Hydrogen Conference, and the Ocean Leadership Conference.