South Africa’s First Unmanned Surface Vessel Delivered to Middle East

By Bobby Jordan

The 9.5m Sea Serpent USV is a collaboration involving Noble Concentric Solutions, Legacy Marine, and Icarus Marine.

South Africa’s first autonomous vessel has been delivered to a client in the Middle East where it successfully completed sea trials, the Cape Chamber of Commerce and Industry reported last week.

The 9.5m Sea Serpent Unmanned Surface Vessel (USV) is a collaboration involving Noble Concentric Solutions, Legacy Marine, and Icarus Marine. The aluminium-hull USV features IMO Level 4 autonomous navigation, allowing it to interpret environments and avoid obstacles with minimal human intervention.

“It was built for a Saudi client as a proof of concept, and they are going to evaluate it from a technical point of view and then recommend it for acquisition for the client,” said project coordinator Eddie Noble. “We are now in the second phase, and hoping for a substantial order. The first vessel has full working specs, and is fully functional. The boat is really state-of-the-art.”

He said the vessel’s sophisticated sensor suite and “over-the-horizon” communication links enabled persistent surveillance at a fraction of the cost of crewed ships. “This is the first to be built, integrated and tested here in South Africa, and more specifically it is the first multipurpose unmanned vessel which can be used for most maritime functions and quite easily be adapted for just about any function you want,” Noble said.

The USV had multiple potential applications, including:

• Defense: Enabling the Navy to practice against sea drones and develop swarming tactics.
• Research: Providing platforms for underwater surveying and environmental monitoring.
• Job Creation: Establishing a new high-tech skills category in autonomous control.

“It is designed to do the ‘dull, dirty and dangerous’, such as inspections in heavy seas, firefighting or harbour patrols where you don’t need crew,” Noble said.

“By fostering a local autonomous systems industry, South Africa positions itself as a regional exporter of high-end technology rather than a mere consumer,” he added.