The Boston-based technology and shipbuilding company, Blue Water Economy, and Damen Shipyards Group have signed a license agreement relating to the construction of new 60-mtr ‘Liberty Class’ autonomous ships for the US Navy. With a payload capacity of more than 150 tonnes, the ships will have a range of 10,000 nautical miles.
The vessels will be built at Conrad Shipyard, Louisiana, with construction of the first ship scheduled to begin in March. Up to 20 Liberty-Class units could be built each year when serial production gets underway, the companies said. This reflects the significance of the Class nomenclature ‘Liberty’: more than 2,700 Liberty ships were mass-produced in US shipyards during World War 2.
The new Liberty Class will be built based on Damen’s Stan Patrol 6009 design, This incorporates the shipbuilder’s distinctive Axe Bow, a vertical bow that slices through water, minimising slamming and saving fuel. More than 300 vessels with this bow profile are in service around the world.
Blue Water Autonomy CEO, Rylan Hamilton, said: “The Liberty Class reflects our focus on building autonomous ships that are designed from the start for long-duration operations and repeat production. By adapting a proven hull and re-engineering it for unmanned operations, we’re delivering a vessel that can operate for extended periods without crew while being produced at a pace the Navy urgently needs. This is a modern take on an old idea: building capable ships quickly and at scale.”
While various navies are pioneering autonomy across a range of ship types, there are many applications in merchant shipping too. Damen has various projects in sectors including tugs, patrol craft and workboats.
Norwegian companies are also leaders in the field. Norwegian fertilizer company, Yara International, for example, has been running the Yara Birkeland, a fully electric autonomous container ship carrying fertilizer on 13-km transits between Porsgrunn and Brevik on the Oslo Fjord since 2022.
