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27 Feb 2024

CMA CGM, COSCO, Evergreen and OOCL Extend OCEAN Alliance to 2032

© MichaelVi / Adobe Stock

French shipping company CMA CGM and its business partners COSCO Shipping 601919.SS, Evergreen 2603.TW and OOCL said on Tuesday that they had agreed to extend their 'OCEAN Alliance' co-operation deal for another five years beyond 2027, to 2032.The 'OCEAN Alliance' partnership aims to help customers deal with their supply chains by offering up fast transit times and access to a wide range of ports, said CMA CGM.The agreement to extend the partnership was signed in Shanghai on Tuesday."The decision to extend our co-operation for at least five more years forges our commitment to meet our customers

13 Feb 2024

Port of Antwerp Disrupted by Belgian Farmers' Protests

© Alexandre / Adobe Stock

Operations at the port of Antwerp, one of Europe's biggest container ports, were seriously impacted on Tuesday as hundreds of farmers on tractors blocked the roads around the port to demand better pay and working conditions, officials said.The protest follows a large number of similar actions by angry farmers in France, Belgium, the Netherlands and beyond, as farmers also demand looser environmental rules and better protection against cheap imports."Operations are heavily disrupted," Stephan Van Fraechem, the director of the association of port companies Alfaport VOKA, told Reuters.

12 Nov 2023

CMA CGM Reports Drop in Quarterly Profit

Source: CMA CGM

CMA CGM said on Friday its profit fell in the third quarter as a COVID-era boom in shipping continued to fade, but its volumes picked up as a destocking trend in the United States was offset by brisk demand in other parts of the world.The French-based shipping giant was cautious about next year's outlook, with the prospect of a recovery in global trade - as U.S. firms finish destocking - tempered by expectations of modest economic growth and an influx of new vessels.CMA CGM, privately controlled by the Saade family…

18 Apr 2023

CMA CGM Offers $5.5 Billion for Bollore Logistics Unit

© dbvirago / Adobe Stock

French shipping group CMA CGM is offering 5 billion euros ($5.48 billion) for the logistics unit of Bollore, the family-run conglomerate said on Tuesday.For Bollore a deal would mean cutting ties with its biggest business while offering cash-rich CMA CGM a chance to bolster its bid to offer end-to-end transportation services and supply chain management.The business posted more than 7 billion euros in revenue last year and has 15,000 employees.News of the indicative offer, made on a cash free and debt-free basis, boosted Bollore's shares.Bollore disclosed it following a report in shipping publi

03 Feb 2023

EU Agrees on Price Caps on Russian Refined Oil Products

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European Union countries agreed to set price caps on Russian refined oil products to limit Moscow's funds for its invasion of Ukraine, the Swedish presidency of the EU said on Friday.EU diplomats said the price caps are $100 per barrel on products that trade at a premium to crude, principally diesel, and $45 per barrel for products that trade at a discount, such as fuel oil and naphtha. Ambassadors for the 27 EU countries agreed on the European Commission proposal,which will apply from Sunday.The price caps…

21 Dec 2022

MSC Group Completes Purchase of Bolloré Africa Logistics

© STOCKSTUDIO / Adobe Stock

French conglomerate Bollore, run by the family of billionaire Vincent Bollore, said on Wednesday it had completed the sale of its Bolloré Africa Logistics arm to shipping company MSC Group.The Bolloré company added the transaction was on the basis of a 5.7 billion euro ($6.1 billion) enterprise value.“The Bolloré Group will remain strongly involved in Africa, notably through Canal+, and will also continue to develop on this continent its activities in many fields such as communications, entertainment, telecommunications and publishing,” added the company in a statement.The Bolloré company hold

20 Dec 2022

Orange Finance Head Fernandez to Join CMA CGM

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French telecoms group Orange's deputy chief executive and head of finance, Ramon Fernandez, is leaving the company to join shipping and transport company CMA CGM as finance director.Fernandez will Orange at the end of the first quarter of 2023, the company said on Tuesday, adding that a successor will be named soon.French transport group CMA CGM said in a separate statement that Fernandez would start his new role at the start of the second quarter next year."I would like to thank Ramon for his unfailing commitment to the group," Orange CEO Christel Heydemann said in statement.

22 Aug 2022

Oldendorff Inks Deal for BOSS Voyage Optimization Suite

"We chose the BOSS Suite for our Cape and Baby Cape Fleet since it met our needs for optimizing voyage operations, while enabling us to see real-time CII analytics for the vessels in one platform," said Capt. Dexter Jeremiah, Managing Director Operations at Oldendorff. Image courtesy Blue Water/Oldendorff

German bulk carrier company Oldendorff Carriers -- which operates about 700 ships globally -- and Blue Water signed a contract to implement Blue Water’s BOSS Voyage Optimization Suite for Oldendorff’s cape and baby cape fleet of owned and time chartered vessels.The BOSS Suite is designed to help propel Oldendorff’s efforts towards a greener maritime trade by reducing emissions through intelligent voyage optimization, weather routing, vessel performance analysis and efficient fleet management.“After one year of successful trials…

01 Apr 2022

CMA CGM to Buy Auto Logistics Firm Gefco

© Sebastian / Adobe Stock

Shipping group CMA CGM is set to buy auto transport company Gefco, French paper Les Echos reported on Friday, citing sources close to the matter.CMA CGM declined to comment.Gefco, in which French-Italian carmaker Stellantis holds a 25% stake, will be valued at 450 to 500 million euros in the deal, the paper said.Auto transport company Gefco, co-owned by French-Italian carmaker Stellantis, said on Friday it will buy back the 75% of its shares that are held by Russian Railways (RZD) after it was placed under western sanctions.(Reuters - Reporting by Tassilo HummelEditing by Sudip Kar-Gupta)

17 Mar 2022

Barring Russian Ships from Rotterdam Port 'Not on Table' for now, Dutch PM Says

Illustration: A Russian ship in the Port of Rotterdam ©Gudellaphoto/AdobeStock

Dutch Prime Minister Mark Rutte said that barring Russian ships from the port of Rotterdam was "not on the table" for now, since any such move would have to be decided at a European level.Rutte made the comments to reporters, while on a visit to Paris, where he will meet French President Emmanuel Macron.Oil prices rose towards $130 a barrel on Wednesday, supported by concern of a potential supply shock as the United States banned Russian oil imports and amid signs that some buyers are already steering clear.On Tuesday, U.S.

03 Mar 2022

France Seizes Yacht Reportedly Belonging to Rosneft Boss Sechin

French customs have seized a yacht belonging to Rosneft boss Igor Sechin as it tried to leave the Mediterranean port of La Ciotat in a breach of EU sanctions on Russian oligarchs, Finance Minister Bruno Le Maire said.The move came as western states are implementing massive sanctions, including asset freezes, against Russia for invading its neighbor Ukraine. A separate nearly $600 million luxury yacht owned by Russian billionaire Alisher Usmanov has also been seized, by German authorities, Forbes reported. The 88-meter "Amore Vero" arrived in La Ciotat on Jan.3 and was due to stay there until April 1st for repairs, the finance ministry said in a statement…

11 Feb 2022

Shipping Giant CMA CGM to Stop Transporting Plastic Waste

©eyewave/AdobeStock

Global shipping group CMA CGM said on Friday it will stop transporting plastic waste on its vessels from June 1 to help curb pollution.One of the world's largest container lines, the French-based firm said it currently carries the equivalent of about 50,000 standard containers of plastic waste per year.Plastic has become a focus of international negotiations on pollution as the oil derivative has filled refuse sites and littered oceans. Some countries have moved to ban imports of such waste.In its announcement made during the One Ocean Summit hosted by France…

31 Jan 2022

CMA CGM to Buy Majority Stake in Delivery Firm Colis Prive

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French shipping giant CMA CGM said it had struck a preliminary agreement to acquire a majority stake in French delivery firm Colis Prive, as it continues to build up its logistics business.CMA CGM is to buy 51% of Colis Prive from current owner Hopps Group and will have an option of increasing its stake further. The value of the planned transaction was not disclosed.Marseille-based CMA CGM has been investing in non-maritime services, similar to its container shipping rivals. After buying Swiss logistics group CEVA Logistics in 2019…

03 Jan 2022

Indonesian Coal Export Ban Rattles a Sector

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The world's leading exporter of thermal coal on Saturday banned the shipments because of concerns it could not meet its own power demand, prompting President Joko Widodo on Monday to threaten to revoke business permits for any miners who failed to meet domestic market requirements.In turn, Indonesian coal miners want a quick resolution as fuel prices rise and and potential disruptions to the energy supplies of some of the world's biggest economies loom.The wider risk is of a knock-on impact on economic linchpins China…

16 Dec 2021

Gupta joins BMT to Head of Casualty Investigation, Asia

BMT appointed Hittesh Gupta as Head of Casualty Investigation, Asia, a key position as BMT looks to expand its office presence for Marine Surveys in Singapore and strengthen its marine consulting services hub position in Asia.With more than 23-years of experience in the shipping industry, Gupta has a deep understanding of marine surveying having served on product and crude oil tankers and offshore oil & gas production units. He has worked extensively for underwriters and leading P&I Clubs undertaking casualty investigations across the full spectrum of vessels and provided assessments of their Cargo / Seaworthiness – Oil, Chemical, Gas tankers…

26 Nov 2021

French Fishermen Block British boat off St Malo Amid Fishing Licenses Row

French fishermen blocked a British cargo vessel from docking in a Brittany port on Friday, in protest at what they say are moves by authorities in London and Jersey to withhold licenses to fish in British waters under a post-Brexit deal.The fishermen held aloft red flares as they circled their boats outside Saint-Malo to block the Normandy Trader's path - a prelude to a planned blockade later on Friday of Calais and the Channel Tunnel, both major transport hubs for trade between Britain and continental Europe.The one-hour Saint-Malo protest and the larger action further east along France's coast risk reigniting a dispute between the…

03 Nov 2021

CMA CGM to Buy Los Angeles' FMS Container Terminal

(Photo: Fenix Marine Services)

Shipping group CMA CGM has agreed to acquire the Fenix Marine Services (FMS) container terminal at the port of Los Angeles in a deal worth around $2 billion that will extend its presence in a crucial hub for transpacific trade.CMA CGM currently has a 10% stake in FMS and it is to buy the remaining 90% from investment fund EQT Infrastructure III on the basis of an enterprise value of $2.3 billion, CMA CGM and EQT said on Wednesday.France-based CMA CGM, one of the world's largest container shipping lines, expects to pay out around $1.8 billion for the 90% stake and will finance the deal from its

14 Oct 2021

WISTA International Elects New Board members

(Photo: WISTA)

The Women’s International Shipping and Trading Association (WISTA) executive committee held its election for three executive positions during their International AGM on October 13. The AGM was hosted in Hamburg alongside a conference that is taking place today and Friday.Connie Roozen, WISTA Netherlands, retains her position as treasurer for another term, whilst two new members were elected as Executive Committee members, Sofia Fu¨rstenberg Stott, WISTA Sweden and Nazli Selek…

25 Aug 2021

MOL, Tata Steel to Develop Environmentally Friendly Bulk Carrier

Credit: MOL (File Photo)

Japanese shipping giant Mitsui O.S.K. Lines (MOL) and its dry bulk subsidiary MOL Drybulk have signed a memorandum of understanding with steelmaker Tata Steel to develop and deploy an environmentally friendly bulk carrier.MOL will partner with Tata Steel on this innovative project to reduce greenhouse gas emissions in its supply chain.Peeyush Gupta, Vice President, Supply Chain, Tata Steel, said: "The objective of the agreement is to reduce greenhouse gas (GHG) emissions in the ocean transportation of raw materials for production of steel.

13 Aug 2020

Shell to Shut Down Philippine Refinery and Turn It into Import Terminal

Illustration only: Credit: MAGNIFIER/AdobeStock

The Philippine unit of Royal Dutch Shell said on Tuesday it will permanently shut one of the country's two oil refineries, blaming a pandemic-led slump in margins, with other regional closures likely to follow, according to analysts.Pilipinas Shell Petroleum Corp said its 110,000-barrel-per-day Tabangao facility in Batangas province, which began operations in 1962, was no longer economically viable and would be turned into an import terminal.Singapore's complex refining margin…

13 May 2020

CMA CGM Takes $1.1 Bln Loan

© Marek Slusarczyk / Adobe Stock

Shipping group CMA CGM has obtained a 1.05 billion euro ($1.1 billion) loan to be 70% guaranteed by the French government as it seeks to bolster its cash position during the coronavirus pandemic, which has hammered international trade.The loan, secured from a consortium of banks comprising BNP Paribas, HSBC and Société Générale, has an initial one-year maturity and an extension option of up to five years, Marseille-based CMA CGM said in a statement on Wednesday.France is offering guarantees to support billions of euros in loans for French companies to help them survive the economic fallout fro

08 Apr 2020

French Aircraft Carrier Heads Home Due to Possible COVID-19 Cases

File photo: French Marine Nationale aircraft carrier FS Charles de Gaulle (F 91) transits the Red Sea, April 15, 2019. (U.S. Navy photo by Skyler Okerman)

France’s flagship aircraft carrier the Charles de Gaulle is returning to its home port early after about 40 crew members showed signs of COVID-19 symptoms, the armed forces ministry said on Wednesday.The personnel were under strict medical observation on board the nuclear-powered carrier, which had most recently been taking part in exercises with northern European navies in the Baltic Sea.“The first cases showed symptoms recently,” the ministry said in a statement. “There are no signs of aggravated cases among the patients.The aircraft carrier would dock in Toulon…

10 Mar 2020

No Coronavirus Found on Marseille Cruise Ship Passengers

Photo courtesy of AIDA Cruises

Tests carried out on two passengers from a cruise ship currently near the French port city of Marseille showed a negative result for the coronavirus, said a spokesman for the Marseille port authority.The passengers had been tested after falling ill with flu-like symptoms, which in turn had led to the other passengers being kept on board the German-owned AIDAsol cruise ship.(Reporting by Marc Leras Writing by Sudip Kar-Gupta Editing by GV De Clercq)