Remote Pilotage

NELSON Project

NELSON develops the physical and digital infrastructure of a fairway in two ways: to enable new innovate maritime services and to support the adoption of remote pilotage.  

The project aims to implement a unified and internationally standardized information exchange environment between ships and shore. The project includes both studies and investments in Finland, Sweden, and Spain. 

Enhanced way of utilizing data, new technologies, and automated solutions will improve maritime safety, efficiency, and reliability. At the same time solutions will contribute to the reduction of climate and other environmental impacts.  

Remote pilotage is used to test and validate the solutions developed in the project, however, the services will be designed to be used by all commercial maritime vessels.  

Work Packages and Scope 

The project work has been divided into six work packages. The first (WP1) focuses on project management and work coordination as well as communication and engagement activities. The other five work packages are:  

VDES Infrastructure Development (WP2) 

• A radio coverage analysis and installation plan for the VDES (VHF Data Exchange System) will be carried out. VDES is part of the maritime communication system designed to enhance communication between vessels and coastal areas, combining VHF radio communication and AIS data transmission to enable versatile data exchange. NELSON will be equipping selected maritime areas in Finland and Swedish territorial waters with VDES base stations to support the needs of remote pilotage trials.  

Remote Pilotage Development (WP3) 

• Remote pilotage procedures and technical requirements will be defined, and new technical solutions will be developed. Remote pilotage will be implemented in both Finland and Sweden, with two remote pilot stations established in each country. Risk and cost-benefit analyses of remote pilotage will be conducted in accordance with the International Maritime Organization’s (IMO) Formal Safety Assessment (FSA) methodology. 

Finnish and Swedish Maritime Digital Services (WP4) 

• A service platform for digital traffic management information services will be established, including an internationally standardised ship route exchange service integrated with Vessel Traffic Services (VTS). Observation data from wave buoys will be converted into a format compatible with Electronic Chart Display and Information Systems (ECDIS). 
• Mandatory ship reporting (MSR) systems will be upgraded to utilise the Maritime Single Window System and the European Maritime Safety Agency’s (EMSA) Integrated Reports Distribution (IRD) service, aiming to reduce reporting burdens for vessels.  
• Situational awareness between VTS systems and ports related to port calls will also be improved by utilising data from the European Maritime Single Window (EMSW) system. Integrating this data into e-navigation services, VTMIS systems, and Port Community Systems (PCS) will enhance interoperability between stakeholders and enable more efficient management of port call processes. 

Testing and Validation (WP5) 

• The developed solutions, services, and infrastructure will be tested and validated using actual vessels. Required equipment will be installed on test vessels according to navigation and testing needs. E-navigation services will be tested while VTS and vessels operate normally. Remote pilotage demonstrations will be conducted during selected test vessel voyages. A maintenance plan and roadmap for the developed smart fairway services will be created. A cybersecurity assessment will be conducted for the data exchange service platform, the route exchange service, and the remote pilotage solution. All services will be audited for cybersecurity before deployment. 

Spanish Maritime Digital Services (WP6) 

• A service platform will be established for digital traffic management information services. Services to be developed on this platform include a port call service, a vessel traffic management service, and a ship route exchange service integrated with VTS. Spain’s mandatory ship reporting (MRS) system will be harmonised with the national maritime data management system to ease vessel reporting requirements. Additionally, new software will be developed for systematic evaluation of requirements under maritime safety management regulations as well as a decision-support tool to assist VTS operators.
• The digital information exchange solutions will be tested and validated in both the Canary Islands and mainland Spain. 

NELSON Facts 

• Official name of the project: NELSON – Development of Navigational Efficiency and Safety with Digital Solutions for Future Fairways 

• Call topic: CEF-T-2024-SIMOBGEN-VTMIS-WORKS 

• Funded by: Connecting Europe Facility – European Commission 

• Consortium Project Manager: Hanna Kajander, hanna.kajander@fintraffic.fi 

• Duration: 01.09.2025–31.08.2028 

• Budget: 14,977,360 EUR of which 50% (7,890,124 EUR) funded by European Union  

Coordinator and Partners 

• Fintraffic Vessel Traffic Services Ltd, Finland (coordinator) 

• Swedish Maritime Administration, Sweden 

• Finnish Meteorological Institute, Finland 

• Finnpilot Pilotage Ltd, Finland 

• Hiades Business Patterns, S.L., Spain 

• Aalto University, Finland 

• Advian Software Oy, Finland 

• Brighthouse Intelligence Oy, Finland 

• Port Authority of Santa Cruz de Tenerife, Spain 

• Port Authority of Huelva, Spain 

Fintraffic is the lead coordinator of the NELSON project and is also responsible for the implementation of work packages WP1, WP2, WP4, and WP5 in collaboration with project partners. Finnpilot Pilotage leads WP3 and Hiades Business Partners leads WP6.