Eastern Pacific signs up for Korean autonomous navigation tech

Singapore-based Eastern Pacific Shipping (EPS) has lined up two of its managed vessels for the installation of artificial intelligence-based autonomous navigation technology developed by Hyundai Heavy Industries’s subsidiary Avikus.

The project will see Avikus’ Hyundai intelligent Navigation Assistant System (HiNAS) Control, HiNAS Cloud and analytics platform for shore-side fleet monitoring deployed on a bulk carrier and a suezmax tanker.

AI-based HiNAS Control integrates information provided from various navigation equipment and sensors to automatically control the ship’s direction and speed without navigator intervention, thereby assisting with collision avoidance and reducing fuel consumption, while the HiNAS Cloud equips shore-based teams with voyage analytics and decision support tools.

“This partnership with Avikus will enable us to accelerate our digital transformation while delivering measurable performance and sustainability gains across our fleet,” said Sachin Saharawat, Technical Director at EPS.

The technology has been installed on more than 350 ships, including both newbuilds and retrofits, and this will be Avikus’ first commercial deployment outside Korea.

The contract with EPS also covers full commissioning and a training programme encompassing onboard and ongoing online crew education.

“This agreement validates the strength of our autonomous technology and its ability to deliver tangible fuel savings and safety improvements,” added Dohyeoung Lim, CEO of Avikus.