Thursday, October 9th, 2025
As part of its AI & Digital Twin (DT) webinar series, ALICE Thematic Group 3 (Systems & Technologies for Interconnected Logistics) hosted its fifth session on 10 September 2025, showcasing how the Port of Algeciras is reimagining its role as a smart, sustainable, and fully digital logistics hub. The session brought together leading experts from the Algeciras Bay Port Authority (APBA), Detektia, and NextPort to present concrete use cases and strategic developments in the deployment of AI and DT technologies across port operations.
Located at a key junction in global trade routes, the Port of Algeciras is Spain’s busiest and Europe’s fourth-largest port by cargo volume. In this session, APBA outlined how it is building a future-ready port through a “Next Generation Port” strategy grounded in data integration, real-time orchestration, sustainability, and open innovation. The digital transformation is being operationalised through a multilayered control platform, often described as a digital “control tower,” which enables situational awareness, predictive analytics, and prescriptive decision support across the port ecosystem.
A key takeaway was the central role of structured data and interoperability in creating intelligent and responsive port environments. APBA highlighted how it is aligning with international data standards and leveraging digital twins to improve port call efficiency, manage emissions, and reduce unplanned disruptions.
The webinar also featured an in-depth presentation from Detektia, whose VIPE platform uses InSAR (satellite radar interferometry) and artificial intelligence to detect micro-deformations in port infrastructure with millimetric precision. By integrating time-series data across aggregated vulnerable areas (AVIs), Detektia’s technology supports early anomaly detection, informs preventive maintenance, and improves infrastructure lifecycle management. Recent developments include natural language AI agents capable of interacting with deformation data, making this sophisticated analysis accessible to non-technical users.
NextPort closed the session with a demonstration of its Operational Digital Twin environment, currently deployed in Algeciras. The system integrates real-time data from port management systems (PMS), AIS, GIS, and metocean sources to support operational decision-making and performance monitoring. Specific applications – such as TopView, FlowOps, and LeanIQ – allow users to visualise vessel operations, manage exceptions, and evaluate the reliability of RoPax ferry scheduling, particularly during the peak summer season of RoPax traffic. This digital twin is now embedded in APBA’s operational workflows and extends predictive ETA/ETD calculations directly to passengers via a public-facing mobile application.
The interactive Q&A session reaffirmed the importance of collaborative innovation and cross-port knowledge sharing across Europe. Emphasis was placed on harmonised data exchange protocols, user-centric design, and the need for regulatory support in accelerating the digital and environmental transition of ports.