French shipping group CMA CGM, together with American infrastructure investment company Stonepeak, established a new terminal company, United Ports LLC. The deal consolidates ten strategically important container terminals in Europe, North and South America, and Asia, previously managed by a CMA Ports subsidiary, under a single holding company. United Ports is headquartered in the United States, with CMA CGM retaining a 75% stake, Stonepeak receiving 25%, and CMA CGM retaining operational management of the assets.
United Ports’ initial portfolio includes terminals in key global maritime hubs: in Europe, CSP Valencia, CSP Bilbao, Terminal Marítima del Guadalquivir, and TTI Algeciras in Spain; in the Americas, terminals in Santos (Brazil), Fenix Marine Services in Los Angeles, as well as Port Liberty in New York and Bayonne; In Asia, these include the Nhava Sheva Freeport Terminal in India, the Kaohsiung terminal in Taiwan, and Gemalink in Cai Mepe in Vietnam. All of these facilities are located on major east-west and north-south trade routes and serve large domestic logistics markets, highlighting their strategic importance to global supply chains.
Stonepeak’s investment values the transaction at US$2.4 billion, with CMA CGM planning to reinvest the proceeds in developing its core businesses – maritime, land, and air transportation, logistics, and supply chain capacity expansion. The company notes that the creation of United Ports will provide access to long-term capital for the development of port infrastructure amid growing demands for automation, digitalization, and decarbonization. The project does not include the Terminal Link assets, where CMA CGM partners with China Merchants, thereby avoiding regulatory complexities and maintaining strategic control over critical terminals.