The Northern Ireland Executive has approved a £15million grant to transform Belfast Harbour into a live environment for testing next-generation zero-emission transport and energy systems.

Dr Caoimhe Archibald, Economy Minister, unveiled the project which is supported by UK Research and Innovation's Local Innovation Partnerships Fund (LIPF).

This specific award represents the second project funded under the £30million allocation designated for the Belfast-Derry Innovation Corridor.

The initiative brings together Artemis Technologies as the lead cluster with partners including the Advanced Manufacturing Innovation Centre, Digital Catapult, the UK Digital Twin Centre and the Centre for Secure Information Technologies.

Testing these technologies within an active port setting aims to generate evidence on how electric vessels, high-power marine charging, autonomous transport and energy systems function as a unified integrated system.

Officials state that such trials are designed to reduce barriers to commercial adoption while building on regional strengths to create new jobs and attract further public and private investment.

The project was authorised by the local LIPF Innovation Panel, which includes representatives from academia, industry and government sectors.

It is hoped that findings from this work could have wider applications across Northern Ireland beyond the immediate port context.

LIPF operates as a flagship UK government programme delivered through UK Research and Innovation (UKRI), with an overall investment of £500 million to strengthen innovation economies throughout the United Kingdom.

Belfast Harbour is set to host these trials which will connect various energy and transport technologies through secure digital twin technology.

The collaboration involves key figures including Dr Iain Percy of Artemis Technologies and Mike Dawson, director for people and digital transformation at Belfast Harbour.

No further legislative changes or procedural hurdles were identified as part of this specific announcement.

The project does not yet have a fixed completion date but is expected to deliver tangible data on system integration within the operational port environment.