on June 22, 2026
Launched in June 2026, the AIMPERES project (AI-driven Modular Platform for Emission-Reduction & Efficient Shipping) is funded by Horizon Europe to the tune of 4.17 million euros. Co-ordinated by Fraunhofer IEM (Germany), it brings together ten partners from six European countries, including Centrale Nantes, around a common objective: to develop innovative solutions to reduce fuel consumption and emissions from the vessels already sailing today.
Most of today's ships will still be operating in 2040. A new EU initiative aims to unlock immediate emission reductions by helping the existing fleet sail more efficiently. It is therefore necessary to take action in relation to the existing fleet, and not just the new-generation vessels. The AIMPERES project addresses this challenge by developing tools capable of improving the energy efficiency of ships already in service. The aim is to help shipowners and crews make better use of on-board energy systems in order to reduce fuel consumption and associated emissions.
The technology will be validated on inland, coastal and deep-sea vessels, with a target of at least five per cent fuel savings and emission reductions
At the heart of AIMPERES is a modular Energy Management System that combines real-time emissions monitoring, artificial intelligence, hybrid digital twins and crew decision-support tools.
The solution will be based on several complementary technological components:
Designed to integrate with existing on-board systems, this device aims to provide a rapid and cost-effective modernisation solution for various types of vessels.
The aim is to transform vessel operational data into practical recommendations for crews and operators. By taking into account sailing conditions and the operation of the various on-board energy systems, these tools will help identify the most effective strategies for reducing fuel consumption and emissions.
By enabling rapid and cost-effective retrofitting across different vessel types, AIMPERES seeks to demonstrate that meaningful emission reductions can be achieved without major vessel modifications.
Within the consortium, researchers from the Research Laboratory in Hydrodynamics, Energetics & Atmospheric Environment (LHEEA), and more specifically from the D2SE team, are contributing their expertise in ship energy modelling and intelligent navigation systems. Centrale Nantes is leading the energy modelling strand. Researchers will develop numerical models, either ‘black-box’ (data-driven) or hybrid (‘grey-box’ and physics-informed neural networks). They will accurately simulate various architectures incorporating batteries, fuel cells, sail propulsion or low-carbon technologies. These models will form the essential building block of the project’s digital twins. As virtual replicas of the ships, they will simulate their operation to help crews optimise their energy performance. In collaboration with its partners, the team will also contribute to the architecture of the Energy Management System (EMS) to intelligently manage these energy flows. This work will serve to optimise the energy topologies of future architectures and to guide retrofitting, a key step in rapidly decarbonising the sector. The solutions will be validated across three sectors: deep-sea shipping, coastal shipping and inland waterway transport, building on the achievements of previous European and national projects.
The AIMPERES project brings together ten partners from six European countries:
Kick-of du projet AIMPERES à Paderborn en Allemagne
Spanning three years, AIMPERES will contribute to the development of innovative solutions to make maritime transport more efficient, more competitive and more sustainable.
