Why LA spent a quarter-million to lure CMA CGM megaship

Copyright: Port of LA

DailyBreeze has posed an interesting question: was the port of Los Angeles right to shell out some $250,000 to attract CMA CGM’s behemoth, Benjamin Franklin, to visit the port first on its maiden voyage? LA officials say it was worth it, garnering at least $1m in publicity and turning a profit of $536,000 from the visit. Rival ports of Oakland and Long Beach did not pay for the ship’s visit and gained less publicity. However, as one expert notes in the article, the future of ULCVs is in a certain amount of doubt at the moment, and not necessarily good for the shipping lines – while the ports have invested billions in being able to serve them.