[By: SEAM]
Haugesund municipality has signed a letter of intent with Torghatten, SEAM, and Zeabuz for the research and development project "Emission-free autonomous city boat". The aim is to initate the route and test the technology starting from the autumn of 2025.
Veronica Charlotte Haugan, project manager of "Emission-free autonomous city boat", announces that new forces have been obtained to carry out the project.
"Competence and experience are the main keys to success when dealing with an innovation project like this. When there were changes in the project that made it possible for us to bring in more players, we chose the three who we believe have the most expertise and experience in this area in Norway. I believe we now have a solid and strong collaboration group that has all the prerequisites to succeed in developing an autonomous city boat in Haugesund," says Haugan.
What is the city boat project?
The city boat project is a Research and Development project (R&D project) with the aim of developing a national pilot for an emission-free autonomous city boat in Haugesund. Initially, the route will run between Haugesund Center (Indre kai), Risøy and Vibrandsøy. In the long term, the aim is to dimension the route to also cover other locations such as Karmøy.
Encourages local development
The new partners are Norwegian Torghatten, Zeabuz and Seam. Torghatten is Norway's largest ferry company with extensive experience from operating ferry and fast boat services across the country, while Zeabuz is the supplier of the advanced autonomy technology that will be found on board the new boat. Together they are behind the world's first commercial autonomous city ferry, MF Estelle in Stockholm.
SEAM is a supplier and integrator of world-leading maritime technology and systems. They have experience from a number of innovation projects such as the LH2 ferry Hydra, the battery swap robot SHIFTR and the hydrogen ferries in the Vestfjorden.
"We have a maritime history and a great coast with islands close to the city that have not been accessible to the public for many years. The city boat project will help make Vibrandsøy accessible to everyone, strengthen the city's maritime identity, and give residents and tourists easy, environmentally friendly access to a fantastic recreation area. At the same time, it will promote business development and tourism in the region," says Annette Sæther, head of business in Haugesund municipality.
Nationally leading project team
The new partners in the project are internationally recognized players who have previously carried out ground-breaking innovation projects in the field. We are now working towards the goal of having the boat in operation (for testing) during the autumn of 2025. This timeframe gives us the opportunity to deliver a full-fledged, safe and reliable service together with our existing and new partners, says Ole Bernt Thorbjørnsen, municipal director in Haugesund municipality.
The new partners will join the ranks of an already solid project group, which consist of Haugesund Municipality, Karmsund Havn, Havnekraft, Remota, Maritime Cleantech, Høgskulen på Vestlandet (HVL) and Norce. The partnership will ensure that the new city boat operates safely, efficiently and environmentally friendly with future-oriented and scalable technology.
Positive ripple effects
Mayor Nils Konrad Bua believes that the project will have positive ripple effects for Haugesund.
"The boat will be the first of its kind. There is no equivalent pilot like this in Norway today, so this is an important milestone for the development of Norwegian technology. The innovation will certainly help put Haugesund municipality and the region on the map when it comes to the development of maritime technology," says Bua, and adds, "This gives us a unique opportunity to link the city islands together and not least to make the city's pearl Vibrandsøy accessible to everyone."
"We strongly believe that the offer will be a valuable addition to the cityscape. The city boat should be available for everyone, and we are very much looking forward to being able to offer this new transport solution to our citizens," concludes Veronica Haugan.
