6 June 2023 – Remota AS – the joint venture between DeepOcean, Solstad Offshore and Østensjø Group – has signed a letter of intent (LOI) with Hyke (Hydrolift Smart City Ferries) to develop remote operations capabilities for Hyke’s ferries

Under the LOI, Remota will support Hyke in the development of the remote operations capability of its electric and autonomous water shuttles. The LOI includes provisions of control technology and the interface between Hyke’s water shuttles and Remota’s Remote Operations Centers that will support and enable the autonomous operations.

“Hyke is on a mission to revolutionize urban mobility for good through new and better waterways,” says Bjørn Utgård, CEO of Hyke.

“Hyke’s autonomous vessel control technology is already improving operations with functions like auto-crossing, auto-docking, and situational awareness. Collaborating with Remota helps us accelerate the transition to higher levels of autonomous operations.

About Hyke ferries

Building on 35 years of product innovation and performance boat manufacturing at Eker Group, Hyke is setting the new standard for urban waterborne mobility. Hyke offers a complete solution, including electric water shuttles, automatic docking and charging jetties, autonomous navigation technology, and vessel operator applications.

Hyke’s solution was recognized in Time Magazine’s “Best Inventions of 2022,” and has been selected by the French Government to operate four of its vessels on a new route on the Seine during the 2024 Paris Olympics.

The Hyke ferry system is filled with intelligent features to simplify fleet management. Every Hyke ferry features proprietary autonomous vessel control technology. This enables operators to improve safety through the auto-docking function supported by sensor packs, reduce costs of operation, and optimize vessel deployment to increase efficiency.

Remote operations for maritime operations

“Hyke’s business proposition is an ideal fit for what we are aiming to achieve with Remota, so we look forward to collaborating to realize both autonomous and remote operations for ferry crossings and achieve substantial cost and environmental savings by doing so,” says Sveinung Soma, CEO of Remota.

Remota was established in 2022 by the Norwegian maritime and offshore industry powerhouses DeepOcean, Solstad Offshore and Østensjø Group. The three companies joined forces to fast-track the adoption of remotely managed services in order to drive down operating costs and emissions for
the marine and offshore industries.

Remota owns and operates advanced onshore Remote Operations Centers (ROCs), which are key to unlocking huge emission reductions and cost savings from the marine and offshore industries. Today, the ROCs operate remotely operated vehicles (ROVs) and underwater drones for the subsea oil and gas industry. However, Remota’s intention has always been to expand its service offering to other industries including offering remote operations and semi-autonomous maritime services to existing
vessels. “The collaboration with Hyke will allow us to develop a world leading remote offering for maritim operations too. This will open up a huge global ferry market for Remota,” adds Sveinung Soma.

Remote operations for maritime operations

The first Hyke water shuttles will be commissioned in Norway in 2023, starting out in Fredrikstad and Haugesund, during 2023. The LOI between Hyke and Remota will enable remote operations for Hyke water shuttles from Remota’s Remote Operations Center (ROC) in Haugesund.
In Fredrikstad, Hyke has a close collaboration with the Municipality, which already operates 8 traditional urban ferries, transporting more than 1.5 million passengers per year. Here, Hyke’s water shuttle will be used to create a new rapid river crossing. The Fredrikstad project will allow Hyke and Remota to demonstrate integration of autonomous operations into traditional ferry networks.

In Haugesund, Hyke and Remota are collaborating with the Municipality, Karmsund Havn, and the University of Western Norway to pilot fully autonomous operations while establishing a completely new urban mobility service. This new service will reduce travel time, congestion, and emissions in Haugesund and confirm Norway’s position as an industry leader. The Haugesund project has received NOK 11 million from the regional Ulla-Førre fund, and will be led by Haugesund Municipality.
“Remota’s three founding companies are all based in the Haugalandet region. While the commercial rationale for supporting the Hyke project is rock solid, the fact that this will take place in Haugesund is an added bonus,” concludes Sveinung Soma.