The Deep Sea segment of the maritime supply chain can be, as the name suggests, a bit of a mystery. This historically opaque link in the supply chain has a number of sizable risks that can lead to significant business implications if not properly and proactively addressed. Gaining better visibility into the marine modality enables organizations to bring these associated risks into light for better management and control, and ultimately more optimal business outcomes.

Let’s take a look at five major risk factors at play in the marine shipping segment of your supply chain:

1. Sustainability

Due to the new focus on managing sustainability to Net Zero, elements of Deep Sea shipping have made their way into the board room of many of the biggest companies in the world. We have all seen countless examples of this in the news as organizations navigate how to capture, share and financially manage Sustainability risk.

2. Sanctions

Sanctions have the power to move markets and significantly effect the value of an organization.  As we saw with the Cosco Sanction, a single sanction on a ship can move Freight Pricing markets which in turn affects not only the ship owner and operator, but also the counterparty who has a cargo on board. Catching sanctions risks during the pre-fixture stage is the best way to avoid costly missteps.

3. Supply Chain Delays

As we know, the Deep Sea portion of your supply chain has a profound impact on the rest of the supply chain. Decisions made within the marine segment, such as which ports are used, have a ripple effect up and down the supply chain. Maintaining on-going visibility into cargo movements is essential to better managing Supply Chain risk.

4. Financial Risks

Bunkers and Freight have a big price tag and can move dramatically.  Knowing your physical and paper positions, both today and in the future, can put you in a position to better manage those swings as to avoid exposing your quarterly or annual results to the inevitable swings in the market.

5. Reputational Risks

Incidents that happen at sea are more and more frequently gaining global coverage.  If the world knows the name of a ship, it’s typically because it has been involved in an incident.  These incidents can have dramatic effects on the reputation of an organization. Being aware of your involvement in the shipping link of your supply chain is a great way to get ahead of risks associated with reputation.

At Veson Nautical, our product suite is designed specifically to help you address these risks in a proactive and simple way.  With better visibility and control, you can see and manage the risks associated with this important and volatile part of your supply chain. To see the benefits in action, read about Repsol’s journey to strengthening the marine link of their supply chain with the Veson IMOS Platform.