• The project will include a pilot test that will simulate a fire on a container ship docked in the Port of Sagunto
• In addition to Fundación Valenciaport, the Port Authority of Valencia and the Provincial Consortium of Firefighters of Valencia will collaborate in the project, together with 16 other European
• The initiative has a budget of more than 7 million euros, co-financed by the Horizon Europe programme

Valencia, February 2nd, 2024. – This week took place in Caserta (Italy), the kick-off meeting of the OVERHEAT project, Innovative strategies for containership fires prevention and management, on prevention, early detection and response to fires on ships.
The initiative, coordinated by the Italian Maritime Academy (IMAT) and in which the Port Authority of Valencia and Fundación Valenciaport participate, has a budget of more than 7 million euros, co-financed by the Horizon Europe programme of the European Executive Agency for Climate, Infrastructure and Environment (CINEA).

The objective of the OVERHEAT project is to prevent and manage fire accidents on board container ships through the use of innovative strategies and technologies. OVERHEAT will leverage the expertise of the consortium entities to develop a solution to help prevent, manage and significantly reduce these fires, to ensure both the safety of people and the preservation of the environment.

OVERHEAT is in line with the objectives and regulations of the International Maritime Organization (IMO), as well as other regulatory bodies, to significantly improve the safety of container ships and the prevention and management of fires on board.

The expected results of the project include, among others, the reduction of the frequency of fires on container ships, the reduction of the risk for crews, coastal and port populations due to the toxic products produced by the combustion of these fires, as well as the significant reduction of shipping accidents, including collisions and groundings of vessels.

In addition, OVERHEAT will introduce automated systems that will help reduce the human factor as a cause of shipping accidents, especially for vessels operating in sensitive areas.

Pilot Test

To test the results of the initiative, a pilot test will be carried out, consisting of a simulation of a fire on a container ship docked in the port and carrying out loading and unloading operations of several containers. The scenario of the pilot test will take place in the Port of Sagunto, with the aim of carrying out a demonstration exercise in a real environment of the usefulness of the technological tools developed during the project.

In addition to Fundación Valenciaport, the Valencia Port Authority and the Valencia Provincial Fire Brigade Consortium, which, together with 16 other European partners, form part of the project consortium, will collaborate in this pilot project. Their participation will be essential to coordinate the various actions that will be carried out simultaneously with the technological partners.