Maersk Tankers is launching a new standalone digital business with the aim of reducing CO2 emissions and optimizing vessels’ earnings across the tramp shipping industry.
The as-yet-unnamed business will develop and sell the software product SimBunker to vessel owners and managers in the tramp shipping industry.
According to Maersk, SimBunker optimizes vessels’ bunker spend, which can account for up to 60% of the total voyage costs, by determining optimal solutions for factors such as speed, bunker purchase and route. The software product was developed within Maersk Tankers and will now be spun off into the new digital business, along with its related customer base.
“Through significant and strategic investment, we have established Maersk Tankers as the digital frontrunner in the tanker industry. Digitisation will enhance customer and partner experience, transform our business and contribute to a more efficient operation, benefitting both sustainability and profitability. This becomes increasingly important at a time when the shipping industry must adapt to take its share in solving complex challenges posed by climate change and new regulatory requirements. With the new set-up, we will be able to accelerate our digital strategy,” says Christian M. Ingerslev, Chief Executive Officer of Maersk Tankers.
The new dedicated team and management of the company will include employees from the existing Maersk Tankers Digital team, as well as new employees to be hired. It will be led by Soren C. Meyer, who is currently Chief Asset Officer of Maersk Tankers.
Meyer takes on the Chief Executive Officer role, effective 7 January 2020 when the new digital business launches operations. He will leave his position at Maersk Tankers and the Leadership Team.
“The shipping industry has an enormous potential for digitisation, especially in commercial and technical areas. As a standalone business, we will be able to accelerate this development. We will be working with players across the industry to optimise pool partners’ bunker spend, using large data sets and analytics. We are confident that such collaboration and digital measures are instrumental in putting the industry on a path to greener growth,” says Meyer.
Maersk Tankers will retain a digital team in-house to develop existing products and bring new digital ideas, led by Peter Schroder, Chief Digital Officer.
Schroder and his team will be working in close partnership with CargoMetrics Technologies, with which Maersk Tankers entered an equity agreement in 2017. The partnership has since then worked on the development of SimTanker, a software product that provides a data-driven trade signal to proactively position the fleet of vessels in the most optimal way. The in-house digital team will also work to digitise more of the pool partners’ ‘customer journeys’ with Maersk Tankers through the online partner portal, ‘InSite digital’.