Long-term impact of recurring disruptions on liner shipping and supply chains

Research Project, 2025 – 2028

The proposed project aims to maintain and develop knowledge and expertise on the topic of disruptions affecting shipping and the supply chains they serve, based on results and observations in conducted studies, in the event of disruptions that occur during the project period, but also with new approaches. Examples of new issues are to analyse from a Swedish perspective how new ways of conducting container shipping affect the sensitivity to disturbances and how the access to empty containers changes for Swedish export companies during disturbances. The research area is very international with intensive knowledge development, knowledge that is put into a Swedish context to support Swedish actors' preparedness to collaboratively deal with future disruptions. We primarily intend to shift the focus from short-term effects of, and actions under, individual disruptions to long-term effects of shipping and supply chains being affected by recurring disruptions. The project includes an analysis of how disruption risks cause long-term changes in the supply chains served by shipping. Deliberate disruptions aimed at shipping are treated based on how they affect the actors in the same way as other types of disruptions, but specific aspects of antagonistic threats affecting Swedish security of supply are left to other projects.