The Minister of Fisheries and Sea, Marianne Sivertsen Næss, signed an agreement with the United Kingdom, Belgium, Denmark, and the Netherlands.
NFD
Norway, the United Kingdom, Belgium, Denmark, and the Netherlands have signed a new agreement so that every autonomous ship will be able to operate safely within each country's national requirements and frameworks.
Specifically, the Minister of Fisheries and Sea in Norway, Marianne Sivertsen Næss, remarked: "This collaboration can contribute to establishing a new international market for the Norwegian maritime industry. The Norwegian maritime industry is at the forefront of developing autonomous solutions."
In addition, the Acting Director General of the Norwegian Maritime Authority, Alf Tore Sørheim talked about the benefit of establishing common technical standards: "This is about the future of shipping. When several major maritime nations come together to facilitate and streamline the operation of autonomous ships, predictability also increases for the maritime industry."
According to the International Maritime Rescue Federation (IMRF), MASS is an acronym used by the International Maritime Organization (IMO) to describe commercial vessels that operate with little or no human intervention, using sensors, software, and communication systems to navigate, avoid collisions and perform the tasks and functions of the vessel.
Thanks to this agreement, the countries will exchange knowledge and information about national activities in line with the MASS philosophy. Thus, requirements for autonomous ships operating in the North Sea basin will be clarified while they wait for international regulations
Moreover, some projects are being developed for assessing market opportunities in the North Sea basin focusing on the expansion of offshore wind installations and their maintenance and the vessels development.
The IMO and the European Union have helped to design this agreement. Also, IMO is working on non-binding rules for autonomous cargo ships. This is expected to be completed by 2025 with the support of the Norwegian government.