Shantel
Key Takeaways:
- Element Alpha, a global energy trading company, partners with Windward to enhance maritime compliance.
- The collaboration aims to improve efficiency, accuracy, and risk mitigation amid growing regulatory complexities.
- The ongoing Russia-Ukrainian war and new EU sanctions make such AI-driven solutions critically important.
- Windward’s Maritime AI™ technology is set to help Element Alpha make smarter, faster, and more responsible business decisions.
About Element Alpha
Founded in 2015, Element Alpha is an independent, privately-owned energy commodity trading group, headquartered in Geneva, Switzerland. With a global footprint that includes offices around the world, the company initially started its operations in the niche markets of the Black Sea and Mediterranean. Over time, it expanded into the U.S., Canadian, northwest European, and Asian markets, leveraging capital from America, Switzerland, Germany, and Britain. Today, Element Alpha trades a diverse range of energy commodities and is increasingly focusing on renewable energies, including power and biofuel.
About Windward
Windward, listed on the LSE (London Stock Exchange) as WNWD, is a leading Maritime AI™ company. The firm offers an all-encompassing platform to meet the risk management and maritime domain awareness needs for accelerating global trade. Its patented technology offers a 360° view of the maritime ecosystem, aiding various stakeholders like ocean freight forwarders, insurers, shipping companies, energy firms, banks, and governments in making real-time, predictive, intelligence-driven decisions.
The Strategic Partnership: Navigating Risky Waters
In an increasingly complex regulatory environment, complicated further by geopolitical conflicts like the Russia-Ukrainian war, Element Alpha has chosen to partner with Windward. This partnership aims to bolster Element Alpha’s compliance screening and due diligence processes across all maritime activities. The collaboration will enable the company to conduct business more efficiently, avoiding pitfalls like false positives, while staying ahead of evolving risks.
What Makes Windward’s Technology Stand Out?
According to Ami Daniel, Co-Founder and CEO of Windward, “Screening for deceptive shipping practices including ship-to-ship transfers and GNSS manipulation is now more critical than ever, and today, more and more companies are turning to AI to run more efficient and effective screening. Our patented technology for identifying deceptive shipping practices is best-in-class, and critical for anyone involved in commodity trading.”
Windward’s Maritime AI™ platform employs machine learning and behavioral analytics to provide actionable insights into vessel behaviors, ownership structures, and risks. It can predict in real-time which vessels are likely to pose high risks, thus aiding companies like Element Alpha in making informed decisions.
Element Alpha’s Objectives for the Partnership
An Element Alpha spokesperson shed light on why Windward was the choice for them: “Windward’s Maritime AI allows us to go deeper and investigate illicit activities and deceptive shipping practices empowering us to make smarter, faster decisions and conduct business responsibly.”
Element Alpha plans to use Windward’s AI-driven platform to screen all vessels associated with the company. The platform will flag risks, including dark activities and other deceptive shipping practices, in real time, making Element Alpha’s screening process more robust.
The Bigger Picture: Maritime Compliance in a Volatile World
The EU Commission’s recent 11th package of sanctions requires ports to deny entry to vessels employing deceptive tactics to dodge sanctions. This has raised the stakes for companies in the maritime trade industry, making due diligence imperative. AI-based platforms like Windward’s are becoming increasingly invaluable for navigating these murky waters. Element Alpha’s proactive steps to employ AI in ensuring the highest level of compliance symbolize a significant industry trend, one that other stakeholders would do well to follow.
Future Outlook: Setting the Course
As Element Alpha continues to evolve in the renewable energy market and seeks further global expansion, its partnership with Windward is expected to significantly contribute to its compliance strategy. This collaboration is not just a technological upgrade but a comprehensive effort to conduct business more responsibly in a rapidly changing world.
For more details on Windward’s revolutionary Maritime AI™ solutions, visit Windward.
