In the future ports will have to put in place ideas that help the maritime industry keep pace with the digital and green revolution. They will have to mobilise finance, technology and skilled talent.
This drive will turn ports, previously known by how many metric tonnes they handle, into ‘blue cities’ where they will promote maritime ecosystems, where intertwined will be logistics, finance, technology and human capital.
It is a fact that dockers are being replaced by data scientists and financiers. Perhaps there is a sign here to suggest that there will be a shift in the type of maritime careers that will be prevalent in our docks when looking into the future.
Singapore is a hive of activity when dealing, specifically, with container ships, handling 41.1 million units (TEU) in 2024, generating nearly $90 billion, or about 7% of GDP. This was more than all Indian ports combined for the same time period and therefore would be a good place to start with regard to how we are going to imagine and then design the way the world’s ports may look in the future.
There are moves to house many of the facets of shipping management, including finance, insurance, arbitration and training under the same roof so that the process of ship financing now takes days rather than weeks. Part of this is achieved through the co-location of banks, research centres and shipowners in the same vicinity, called relational proximity by economists.
Another option is to link logistics companies, AI firms and clean-tech start-ups, such as in Rotterdam, turning the harbour into a living innovation lab.
Managing the requirements for good horizontal space, demanded by port terminals, and vertical space, needed by residential and commercial ventures, some ports are turning themselves into cohesive spaces, designed to facilitate industry, tourism, education and maritime start-ups in one district.
This is intended to link academia, industry and government, so that the coders, financial analysts and environmental engineers can develop together in one area. This is making the transition from ports to blue cities as smooth as possible.
The underlying principle is to encourage integration instead of expansion. Ports will thrive when embedded in a city space that nurtures talent, finance and research.
With its long coastline India is expected, given the input of deep legal, regulatory and financial capacity measures, to become a major hub for the future of the shipping industry. These state-of-the-art ports will probably be electrified and financing this move, and the demands of the greener fuel’s revolution, maybe in the hands of cities like London which is still one of the leaders of shipping finance.
If India sets itself up as centres for sustainable finances, it could turn decarbonization regulations, which are certainly on their way, into opportunities to become innovators and global leaders. India has 7,500 kilometres of coastline, 20 major ports and more than 200 non-major ports, so has massive potential. It has a rich pool of managerial and engineering talent with schemes having been set up to facilitate technological demands located across India.
Coastal regeneration and industrial efficiency, as a combination, will have the effect of creating more jobs, higher land value and a better standard of life. This could be a template for new ‘blue cities’ around the world.
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