Diverse Marine launches first autonomous vessel

“She is fully fitted and equipped with autonomous equipment, can drive herself or be controlled and driven by the office in Aberdeen, where she will go,” Diverse Marine managing director Ben Colman told Maritime Journal.

“She can launch the ROV off the back, use her own sensors – a fully autonomous workboat.”

Hydronaut, designed by Global Marine Design, is powered by two Volvo Penta IPS 1050 engines, Colman said, with a gyro stabiliser. She is 18 metres long by 6.5 metres beam.

Because of MCA rules, no vessel can operate uncrewed within six miles of the coast, says Colman, although Hydronaut does have the capability.

“They either have to be crewed or have a chase RIB,” he said. “We will be launching a second Hydronaut in January, and are treating them as technology demonstrators. They will be UK flagged, and perform all manner of survey operations for oil and gas or offshore wind within the UK and Europe using the survey gear on the ROV.”

Aquanaut, says Nauticus Robotics, can repair pipelines and scan the seabed entirely autonomously or remotely, running entirely on battery power.

At 4.2m x 2.03m, and with a height of 1.71m, she has a maximum speed of six knots and a maximum range of 250km.