CMA CGM announces inaugural call at Port of Wilmington in North Carolina

The 10,500-TEU CMA CGM COLUMBA arrives in March at the Port of Wilmington. CMA CGM remains committed to offering end-to-end solutions for its customers in today’s high-demand supply chain environment.

CMA CGM Group, a world leader in shipping and logistics, will make an inaugural call at North Carolina’s Port of Wilmington in March with the CMA CGM COLUMBA. The vessel will be specially deployed between China, South Korea and the U.S. East Coast as part of the Group’s efforts to help its U.S. customers during a time of tension in the global supply chain.

In total, this extra loader will carry roughly 10,500 TEUs of commodities such as furniture, household goods, consumer products and construction tools between Asia and the U.S. East Coast.


A full range of solutions to support U.S customers’ supply chains

Since the beginning of the pandemic, CMA CGM has steadily implemented a variety of solutions to increase the velocity of its customers’ supply chains. In 2021, the company boosted deployed capacity by more than 27% year-over-year and is already planning an additional 16% increase in 2022.

The Group also recently announced its Early Container Pickup Incentive Program on the West Coast to help alleviate port congestion and recently purchased the Fenix Marine Services (FMS) terminal at the Port of Los Angeles.

The CMA CGM Group delivers end-to-end customer solutions by relying on two solid pillars, shipping and logistics, which includes subsidiary CEVA Logistics and CMA CGM AIR CARGO.

Ed Aldridge, President of CMA CGM and APL North America,stated, “With robust global demand and a thriving economy, the inaugural call at the Port of Wilmington is yet another step by the CMA CGM Group to expedite the flow of goods into the United States. Our strategic relationships at ports throughout North America give the Group a competitive advantage to efficiently move product and provide customers with end-to-end solutions. As we prepare for more growth in 2022 and beyond, this milestone is the beginning of a bright new year at CMA CGM filled with innovation and industry-leading actions designed to deliver Better Ways of doing business.”

About CMA CGM

Led by Rodolphe Saadé, the CMA CGM Group, a global leader in shipping and logistics, serves more than 420 ports around the world on five continents. Backed by a fleet of 542 vessels, in 2020 the Group transported nearly 21 million TEU (twenty-foot equivalent units) containers. With its subsidiary CEVA Logistics, a world leader in logistics, which transports 400,000 tons of air freight and 2.8 million tons of land freight each year, and its air freight division CMA CGM AIR CARGO, the CMA CGM Group is continually innovating to offer its customers a complete and increasingly efficient range of new shipping, land, air and logistics solutions. Committed to the energy transition in shipping, and a pioneer in the use of alternative fuels, the CMA CGM Group has set a target of carbon neutrality by 2050. An approach involving ongoing improvement which brings concrete results, with a decrease of 4% in the total CO₂ emissions of the Group in 2020. Through the CMA CGM Foundation, every year the Group helps thousands of children through its actions to promote education for all and equal opportunity. The CMA CGM Foundation also acts in humanitarian crises that require an emergency response by mobilizing the Group’s shipping and logistics expertise to bring humanitarian supplies around the world. Present in 160 countries through its network of more than 400 offices and 750 warehouses, the Group employs more than 110,000 people worldwide, including 2,400 in Marseilles where its head office is located. In the United States, CMA CGM Group, which is headquartered in Norfolk, Va., employs more than 12,000 people. Its subsidiary, American President Lines (APL), operates a fleet of U.S.-flagged vessels and supports U.S. territories and American military stationed around the world.