[#273] Supply Chain in Numbers - Feb 17, 2025
Shanghai port hits 5M TEUs in Jan, Basetwo raises $11.5M, Americold plans adding 22k pallet cold storage in Canada, Tive raises $40M, Tanzania plans $2.15 billion cargo line to connect a Nickel mine
Welcome to “Supply Chain in Numbers.” This newsletter tracks significant numbers from the supply chain world. Five prominent numbers are published every Monday. If you have any feedback, please send it to me.
5 million TEUs in January
China’s busiest port processed a record amount of goods in January as companies rushed to get their products onto ships before US tariffs kicked in and ahead of a long local holiday. Shanghai’s port processed a record 5 million containers last month, well above any previous month in data going back to 2007. Last year, the port was the first globally to process over 50 million containers in one year, as rising global demand, falling Chinese prices, and the threat of tariffs combined to push the value of exports to a record. [G Captain]
$11.5million Series A
Toronto-based Basetwo has closed a $11.5 million (CAD 16.5 million) Series A round for its artificial intelligence (AI)-powered copilot for manufacturing engineers. The software-as-a-service (SaaS) startup is trying to solve tech inefficiencies in large-scale chemical manufacturing. Basetwo says its AI platform can cut energy consumption and costs for the mass production of pharmaceuticals, consumer goods, and gas processing. Basetwo’s AI copilot seeks to help chemical manufacturers make production more efficient. For pharmaceutical companies, this could mean identifying and setting the optimal reactor temperatures and mixing speeds when scaling up the production of new drugs. [Beta Kit]
Cold storage hub of 22,000 pallets
Americold Realty Trust plans to build a cold-storage warehouse near Port Saint John in New Brunswick, Canada, its first import-export hub under its ongoing partnership with Canadian Pacific Kansas City (CPKC) to expand intermodal reefer throughout North America. Americold plans to spend between US$75 million and $80 million on a warehouse that can handle up to 22,000 pallets, approximating 300,000 square feet of space. The company said the warehouse will handle refrigerated cargo between Port St. John's DP World container terminal and CPKC. [JoC]
$40 million Series C
Tive sells single-use tracking devices that can be linked to its cloud platform to let companies in industries like life sciences and food and beverage check the status of their freight. In addition to tracking location, Tive’s sensors can monitor temperature, humidity, light, and “shock” — i.e., physically violent motions. Customers can get real-time alerts, analytics, and data-sharing tools through Tive's cloud platform. Tive claims to have more than 900 customers today in sectors like pharmaceuticals, "high-value” goods, and military and government clients. To expand its Boston-based workforce of around 243 employees, Tive recently raised $40 million in a Series C round. [Tech Crunch]
$2.15 billion to connect a Nickel Mine
Tanzania signed a $2.15 billion deal with two Chinese firms to construct a railway linking its main port of Dar es Salaam to a nickel mine in neighboring Burundi. The primary purpose of the 282-kilometer (175-mile) Uvinza-Musongati standard gauge railway line is to facilitate the import of critical minerals and open up cross-border trade between the two East African nations. Tanzania Railways Corp. awarded the contracts to China Railway Engineering Group Ltd. and China Railway Engineering Design and Consulting Group Co. in Dar es Salaam. [Mining]