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OHB joins forces with start-up Searoutes

22 November 2021

OHB Venture capital GmbH has made an investment in French start-up Searoutes. The Marseille-based company specialises in highly innovative digital solutions for the maritime and logistics sectors and has taken on the mission to reduce the greenhouse gas emissions of freight transportation by providing shippers with insights into the CO2 footprints of different transport routes.

To provide the relevant data for this service, Searoutes makes use of AIS data , provided by OHB’s subsidiary LuxSpace Sarl, which allow the identification and precise positioning of ships. Searoutes uses not only current but also historical AIS data to map routes frequently used by ships. This information is then combined with other datasets (e.g. ship characteristics, weather patterns and currents) to forecast the carbon footprint of a container transported via a specific transport route or to provide an accurate report of transport routes used in the past.

POOLING OF STRENGTHS

In addition to the investment in the start-up, LuxSpace Sarl has signed a cooperation agreement to pool the strengths of both companies and leverage the potential of vessel tracking information by improving joint sales activities as well as product developments in the field of maritime data analytics. “We are very happy to work together with Searoutes to decarbonise supply chains. Not only is their missions exciting but it also contributes perfectly to the growth of our DIGITAL segment,” says Egbert Jan van der Veen, Managing Director of OHB Venture Capital.

Pierre Garreau, founder and CEO of Searoutes adds: “LuxSpace and OHB are two companies deeply rooted in research and development. From my very first meeting with Egbert and his team, I knew we were speaking the same language. The expertise in satellite design and data collection – especially in the areas of AIS, Earth observation imagery and monitoring of greenhouse gases – made OHB an obvious partner. I am very excited about this collaboration and look forward to our close cooperation.