The crucial role of the North Sea for security, energy, and the economy was the focus of Drone West x Captains of Industry Day in Oostende on Thursday, October 29. POM West-Vlaanderen, the Belgian Navy, and De Blauwe Cluster organized the event, bringing together nearly 400 visitors from companies, knowledge institutions, and governments to discover innovative technologies and explore new collaborations. The event merged the Drone West and Captains of Industry Day initiatives for the first time.
The North Sea is essential for Belgian security, energy supply, and economy, featuring important shipping routes, subsea cables, and offshore wind farms. The need for monitoring and situational awareness is increasing, partly due to the registration of 73 Russian military and 22 research vessels off the coast in 2026. Drones, autonomous systems, and maritime innovations offer new possibilities for this. The program included autonomous vessels, anti-drone systems, inspection drones, and maritime surveillance technology.
POM West-Vlaanderen launched Drone West in 2018 to leverage the potential of drone technology. The event has grown into a meeting place for technology companies and researchers. Jean de Bethune, chairman of POM West-Vlaanderen, confirms the growing interest: "Drones are increasingly finding their way into concrete applications. We help companies, researchers, and technology developers initiate new collaborations and solve specific problems."
For the Belgian Navy, Captains of Industry Day is an important moment to learn about new technological developments and for companies to engage with the operational reality at sea. Division Admiral Tanguy Botman, Commander of the Navy, emphasizes the importance of this interaction: "By giving companies and researchers access to this operational reality, they can develop solutions faster that truly make a difference."
Within maritime security, De Blauwe Cluster focuses on protecting critical infrastructure such as wind farms and subsea cables. Piet Opstaele, CEO of De Blauwe Cluster, states that the challenge lies in translating collected data into usable insights, requiring collaboration between technology developers and users.
Visitors also gained insight into practical applications of unmanned systems, ranging from underwater and above-water inspections to detecting suspicious activities at sea. Drone West x Captains of Industry Day highlighted both the challenges of maritime security and the technological solutions being developed.
