CMA CGM makes Kingston a key hub in wake of widened Panama Canal

MARSEILLE: CMA CGM has made Kingston, Jamaica, its strategic Caribbean hub in anticipation of an expanded Panama Canal, the company announced.

“A widened canal will bring new opportunities for world trade, modernization works will allow the group to operate all larger vessels sailing in the area, and make Jamaica a transshipment hub for the whole sub region,” said CMA CGM Director of Studies, Projects and Development Luc Portier.

Centrally located in the Caribbean Sea, just one day away from the Panama Canal, Kingston is set to become a transshipment center connecting the US East Coast, the Gulf of Mexico, the Caribbean and northern Brazil, the company said.

The Shipping Group secured the Kingston Containers Terminal concession on April 7 last year.

The Panama Canal is a strategic route for CMA CGM. The group was the canal’s second client for containerized transport last year, with one vessel a day passing through the canal, and more than 835,000 of TEUs (twenty foot equivalent) carried through the canal.

Source: - Dailyshippingtimes.com