Although the shipping industry is putting greater focus on making remote and autonomous ships a reality, the flurry of developments in this field might not be in the best interest of all shipping markets.
On the back of the technological developments in autonomy, and other major trends in the maritime industry, including digitalisation, digital disruption and steps taken towards green shipping, World Maritime News spoke to Gernot Ruppelt, Chief Commercial Officer, Ardmore Shipping, who said that tankers would not benefit from vessel autonomy.
“At this stage, we don’t see a market for unmanned shipping in the tanker sector,” Ruppelt told World Maritime News.
