Spanish Port Of Algeciras To Trial IBM-Maersk Blockchain Shipping Platform

Spain’s Bay of Algeciras Port Authority (APBA) is partaking to trial TradeLens, a blockchain-powered international shipping solution created jointly by Maersk and IBM. Algeciras is a town in the district of Cádiz in the autonomous region of Andalusia, Spain.

Being one of the top ten busy ports in Europe, it handles annual freight traffic of more than 70 million tons. The port covers more than 10 kilometers of seafront in various basins that handle all kinds of commuter and freight transport.

TradeLens, which was launched a year back, is a global IBM blockchain trading platform built to minimize international shipping costs, enhance perceptibility across supply chains and remove paper-based process inefficiencies.

The TradeLens environment now comprises over 20 port and terminal managers symbolizing approximately 234 marine entry points or seaports on five continents. The report also claims that the platform has recorded 230 million shipments and handled over 20 million containers.

APBA opined that the TradeLens software will make it possible to share information and paperwork more safe and efficiently, nurture partnership and increase the confidence of the parties concerned throughout the international supply chain. The platform will create value for exporters, freight agents, supply chain management firms and carriers.

IBM also believes that trading partners can work together smoothly through a cohesive, shared perception of market data protected by “state-of-the-art” encoding through the digitization of global supply chains. Network data is highly classified and each TradeLens participant owns its data even though it exists on the blockchain, which means that they will only be able to give access to it to other parties.

Many of the world’s top container shipping lines and terminal managers are studying blockchain technology for the global trade environment. Back in November, major ocean carriers such as CMA CGM, Cosco, OOCL, Yang Ming, Evergreen Marine, along with DP World, PSA International, Hutchison Ports and Shanghai International Port were created to build a new blockchain-based platform, known as the Global Shipping Business Network (GSBN). The final objective of the syndicate is to “facilitate the seamless sharing of documents and data across all stages of the shipping lifecycle.”