MSC, Mærsk & CMA CGM – where rivalry doesn't matter (and where it does)
Behind closed doors
Photo" © Mariusz Bugno, Dreamstime.com
Spokespersons for the Yemeni-based Houthi militia have told The Loadstar they will no longer target commercial vessels transiting the Red Sea.
Last week, the group said they would target vessels entering Israel’s port of Haifa, but their statement was ambiguous on what this meant for ships using a waterway under threat of attack for the better part of 18 months.
But yesterday the group confirmed to The Loadstar: “Ships transiting the Red Sea without stopping at port of Haifa will not be targeted.”
But it added: “Haifa is included in the target bank.
“Yemeni armed forces affirm there will be no hesitation in taking any additional measures in support of the oppressed Palestinian people, who are facing daily massacres and a genocide of unprecedented scale, along with their steadfast resistance.”
Despite the stepdown by the Houthis, there is no indication of a rapid return of commercial shipping to the waterway, with CMA CGM the only “truly” global carrier to resume services.
From mid-June, the French carrier will revert to a Suez routing for its Med Express service (MEDEX), adding to the previously reported,resumption of its Mediterranean Club Express (MEX) service, with vessel scheduling data indicating a 21 June sailing for the 16,000 teu CMA CGM Jules Verne.
As the story went to press, The Loadstar was still waiting for comment from CMA CGM or the Houthis whether the carrier’s return had been negotiated between the pair.
One container shipping source said it could be that CMA CGM was operating on the basis of “a different risk assessment”, but was unable to confirm if this was the case beyond noting that it was a stance the carrier had held “throughout most of the conflict”.
“For the other carriers I believe there are four elements involved, the first being the conflict might again change, and hence the Houthis may again target ships,” they told The Loadstar.
“Houthis can change their approach with zero lead time, whereas changing the liner networks is a major undertaking that takes months – and beginning to change only to have to change back again would be highly destructive.”
A case in point, they continued, was Maersk, which had attempted to reroute through Suez only to be forced into returning to transiting around the Cape of Good Hope.
Added to which, the source said, carriers would be under the influence of shippers, “some of which prefer a stable and predictable supply chain and do not wish to risk having their cargo ‘trapped’ in an attack (let alone be caught in a general average event).”
They continued: “Some carriers have a genuine concern for the safety and wellbeing of the seafarers they employ and do not want to expose them to risk.
“It can also be a consideration that a reversal to Suez will – with several months of lag time – result in a global overcapacity problem again, but once the Red Sea is genuinely safe, you will see the carriers shift back, regardless of the capacity issue.”
Since last autumn, however, CMA CGM’s East Asia-Mediterranean Phoenician Express service (BEX2) has been a regular user of the canal, as part of the Ocean Alliance, with its Persian Gulf-Mediterranean Levant Middle East Express service (LMX) also running via Suez.
Vespucci Maritime CEO Lars Jensen said an “open question” was how many CMA CGM reversions it would take to prompt others back.
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