9 Ocean Carriers Commit to 100% eBL by 2030

The nine ocean carriers that are members of the Digital Container Shipping Association (DCSA) have committed to 50% adoption of an electronic bill of lading (eBL) within 5 years and 100% by 2023. Their commitment accelerates the digitization of original bills of lading.

Every year an estimated 45 million bills of lading are issued by ocean carriers and DCSA says that only 1.2% of these were electronic in 2021. DCSA estimates that the digitization of bills of lading would save stakeholders US $6.5 billion in direct expenses by reducing human error, allows for faster document handling, and other improvements. Digitalization also reduces trade friction and could enable an estimated $30-40 billion in global trade growth per year.

The DCSA consists of 9 major ocean carriers: MSC, Maersk, CMA CGM, Hapag-Lloyd, ONE, Evergreen Line, HMM, Yang Ming, and Zim.

Sources:
1. 100% eBL by 2030, DCSA Website, Accessed Mar 8, 2023.
2. DCSA’s ocean carriers agree on 100% eBL transition by 2030, Container News, Feb 15, 2023. Accessed Mar 8, 2023.