Boat · Demonstrator
The full-scale demonstrator of the BIUTOPIC system: a restored Renaud 8000 (1987) being transformed into a shared scientific base. Through its EXO-01 exoskeleton, it is designed to become solar, electric and silent. Operated by a qualified crew — participants take part in navigation under supervision.
At a glance
- What
- Retrofitted barge · solar-electric exoskeleton
- Where
- Erdre riverbanks, Nantes
- When
- Commissioning · in preparation
- Who
- BIUTOPIC SAS · ESS / ESUS-oriented
- How
- Qualified crew · up to 10 participants
On board
Specifications
- Size 9 m × 4 m · 8 m × 3 m hull
- Category Category C · Division 240
- Licence Licence held by the crew — helm under supervision
- Capacity 10 participants
- Sleeping 1 double cabin · convertible saloon
- Galley Equipped galley
Navigation
The Erdre winds north of Nantes — « la plus belle rivière de France » — before joining the Nantes-Brest canal. Fifteen kilometres through Natura 2000: herons, kingfishers, otters, over 200 bird species. Twenty-two châteaux line the banks.
Where the boat stands
What exists
- Restored Renaud 8000 hull (1987)
- Physical boat available
- Restoration work completed
- Base fit-out — saloon, cabin, galley
Being integrated
- EXO-01 exoskeleton — solar energy and electric propulsion
- Scientific equipment and sensors
- Regulatory and insurance preparation
- Mooring and operating framework
Future potential
- Floating scientific base
- Environmental missions and citizen science
- Public navigation and engagement
- Research residencies · media production
- Support for autonomous platforms
Plate · Symbiosis 03 · The wreck-reef
An abandoned hull can become a reef: life settles in, and the hull protects what surrounds it.
This 1987 Renaud 8000 follows that path — restored rather than replaced, it becomes a support for research and for life.
A platform for aquatic resilience
L'Hydronaute is designed first and foremost for scientific research and environmental monitoring. Its regular presence on inland waterways can also contribute to aquatic resilience: early pollution detection, environmental assessment, risk prevention and rapid situational awareness.
Once an appropriate legal and operational framework is established, the platform may also provide technical and scientific support to the competent authorities during public-interest operations — its scientific mission may then be temporarily interrupted whenever an urgent situation requires priority support.
- Environmental monitoring
- Pollution detection & assessment
- Risk prevention
- Rapid situational awareness
- Scientific support during incidents
- Support to competent authorities · under formal agreements
Safety by design — today: crew training, operational risk assessment · in build with EXO‑01: redundant electric propulsion, precise low-speed manoeuvrability, communications and observation equipment · envisaged: thermal imaging, sonar, drones, emergency equipment.
BIUTOPIC is not a rescue service and claims no partnership with any emergency service — any support would take place under a formal agreement.
Frequently asked questions
- Do I need a boat licence?
- A licence is required for this vessel — and the qualified crew aboard holds it. You therefore need no personal licence: you can take the helm and join mission control under the operator's supervision, where operationally appropriate.
- How many people can come?
- Up to 10 participants — the vessel is registered for 12 passengers, operational capacity keeps a margin. L'Hydronaute measures 9 m × 4 m with the exoskeleton — there is plenty of room.
- Where do we sail?
- On the Erdre, north of Nantes. Fifteen kilometres through a Natura 2000 zone, twenty-two châteaux lining the banks — named "the most beautiful river in France" by François I. The sailing area will be confirmed once the boat is certified.
- Is the first voyage confirmed?
- Not yet. Commissioning is in preparation, subject to final validation of the technical configuration and administrative authorisations (AOT). Write to us to be notified when we open — people on the list receive the dates first.
The boat is restored. Integration of EXO‑01, the technical configuration, insurance and the mooring framework are being finalised. Sign up to be notified when the first sailings open.
Citizen science — recommended contribution €35 ·
approximately 2 hours · goûter included (2026–27
early-stage ESUS rate · at opening, subject to the mooring
framework)
Take part in a real working research platform — not a staged
demonstration. Every mission is different and research always takes
priority. Up to 10 participants (vessel registered for 12 passengers).
Public reception: configuration validated with the DDTM.
Play → Plan → Navigate → Measure → Contribute
- Navigation & mission control
- Water-quality measurements
- Sampling
- Biodiversity observation
- Hydroacoustics
- HYDRO-01 interaction
- Meeting the researchers
Pay what feels right around the recommended amount: giving more offers someone else a place, giving less leans on the generosity of others.
Participation in navigation and mission control happens under the supervision of the qualified operator, where operationally appropriate — and can start today in simulation with Trashure Island.
No payment or deposit is taken until the mooring framework and insurance are confirmed.
Or directly: hydronaute@biutopic.com
TECHNICAL DOSSIER · HISTORY
Original blueprints, general characteristics sheet and delivery photos — Renaud 8000 barge (1987), 9 m × 4 m with the exoskeleton, Category C.
Layout — convertible saloon, equipped galley, double cabin and helm station.