India's largest port operator APSEZ has partnered with the TradeLens blockchain platform developed by IBM and Maersk to digitize supply chains.
APSEZ plans to integrate the TradeLens blockchain solution into the work of ten cargo management services in ports in six States of India. In particular, the blockchain will be implemented in four ports in Gujarat, as well as in the ports of Orissa, Tamilnada, Goa, Chennai, Andhra Pradesh and Kerala. APSEZ plans to digitize supply chains and transfer them to the blockchain to reduce the impact of vulnerabilities in the existing traditional system on cargo delivery.
The coronavirus pandemic has highlighted the shortcomings of the existing supply chain system, which relies heavily on paper documents and manual processes. An employee of one of the logistics services who wished to remain anonymous said:

"During the pandemic, we realized the price to pay for not digitizing supply chains. Now there will be drastic changes in the industry, and more and more companies will start implementing this technology."

The TradeLens platform, developed by Maersk and IBM, is expected to help APSEZ make information sharing faster, cost-effective, transparent and secure. A study conducted by QBIS Consulting on overall transport and logistics costs has shown that digitizing processes in the supply chain can save importers of one major port up to $220 million per year. Exporters can also save about $40 million a year, and at the state level, it is possible to reduce costs by $860 million.

the TradeLens platform was launched in August last year, and since then it has managed to attract many large organizations. At the moment, the ports of Valencia, Algeciras, Saint Petersburg, Oman, as well as the Hong Kong container terminal operator and the North American container terminal operator Global Container Terminals (GCT) have already been connected to the system. In addition, the platform is being tested by the customs services of Thailand and Jordan.