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Takeoff of remote pilotage remains remote for now
Key challenges would need to be overcome if remote ship pilotage is to be developed and implemented worldwide
A consortium of organisations in Canada is investigating whether ships can be remotely or autonomously piloted in port approaches, ports, harbours, rivers and lakes.
A study carried out in Q2 2025 by the Canadian Coast Guard, International Maritime Pilots Association (IMPA), Lloyd’s Register and Canadian National Centre of Expertise on Maritime Pilotage (NCEMP) discovered these challenges and considered the reasons why progress to trialling the technology would be difficult.
These challenges relate to system redundancy, enabling critical pilotage tasks, sharing situational awareness, collision avoidance, relative navigation and manoeuvring close to other ships and infrastructures.
A main conclusion was that technical solutions need to mature and be tested to meet the prerequisites of remote pilotage in port approaches, ports, canals, rivers and lakes where pilotage is mandatory.
“We have had a glimpse of what might be possible, but we are not there yet,” said IMPA president Simon Pelletier. “Our primary concern is how to conduct trial phases that are not skewed by the limitations of technology solutions. Artificial limits will not help us deliver the objectives of the study.”
More work on this study is expected in Q4 2025 when the consortium intends to provide more details to manufacturers and system integrators on the goal-based requirements for remote pilotage solutions that could be trialled in mandatory pilotage areas.
NCEMP executive director Alain Arseneault was disappointed by the response from these system integrators and technology providers for this initial study.
“The first time around, we wanted to see what was out there, and we did not want to put people off by being too prescriptive,” said Capt Arseneault.
“We had anticipated a lot of interest as a result, but this did not materialise. We have learned through this process that a more detailed set of goal-based requirements may help identify a minimum viable solution we can use in the study.”
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