A new European project, AIMPERES (AI-driven Modular Platform for Emission-Reduction & Efficient Shipping), is aiming to help shipowners cut fuel consumption and emissions from vessels already in operation, rather than waiting for new-builds to enter service.
Coordinated by Fraunhofer IEM and backed by €4.17m (US$4.8m) in funding from Horizon Europe, AIMPERES will develop and demonstrate an AI-powered energy management system intended to make shipping more efficient, competitive and sustainable. The project is funded under the HORIZON-CL5-2025-04-D5-12 call and brings together 10 partners from six European countries spanning research, industry, maritime education and vessel operations.
At the core of AIMPERES is a modular energy management system combining real-time emissions monitoring, artificial intelligence, hybrid digital twins and crew decision-support tools. Designed to integrate with existing onboard systems, the ESS is intended to offer a practical, cost-effective way to optimize vessel performance and reduce emissions.
Tobias Seidenberg, coordinator of the project at Fraunhofer IEM, said, “Decarbonizing shipping requires solutions that can be deployed across the existing fleet, not only on the vessels of tomorrow. AIMPERES combines emissions monitoring, artificial intelligence and decision support into a practical solution that can help shipowners reduce fuel consumption and emissions while improving operational performance.”
The system pairs low-cost exhaust monitoring with advanced vessel models and AI-based optimization to convert operational data into actionable recommendations for crews and operators on board and on shore.
Most vessels in operation today are expected to remain in service well beyond 2040, making retrofitting and operational improvements essential to achieving emission reductions over the coming decade. The technology will be validated on inland, coastal and deep-sea vessels, with a target of at least 5% in fuel savings and reductions in CO2, NOx, SOx, and particulate matter emissions.
By enabling rapid, cost-effective retrofitting across vessel types, AIMPERES aims to show that meaningful emission reductions are achievable without major vessel modifications. The demonstrations are expected to provide insight into how AI-driven optimization can be applied across different vessel segments, helping shipowners improve efficiency and comply with increasingly stringent environmental requirements.
Håvard Tvedte, interim CEO of Maritime CleanTech, said, “The existing fleet has to deliver if we are to meet climate targets. This partnership puts AI to work to help shipowners make better decisions every day and turn that into measurable emission reductions, and we are pleased to address this together with the strong partnership and the EU.”
Over its three-year run, AIMPERES will develop and demonstrate the system across inland, coastal and deep-sea vessel segments. The consortium includes Fraunhofer IEM (Germany), Universiteit Antwerpen (Belgium), Antwerp Maritime Academy (Belgium), École Centrale de Nantes (France), STC Group (Netherlands), Navalprogetti (Italy), Nestra (Netherlands), Navtor (Norway), Transtal Shipping (Netherlands), and Maritime CleanTech (Norway).
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