Lebanon: The CMA CGM Group wins the concession for the container terminal of the Port of Beirut

Following a tender procedure for the concession of the container terminal of the Port of Beirut, CMA Terminals, a 100% subsidiary of the CMA CGM Group, a world leader in maritime transport and logistics, has been chosen to manage, operate and maintain the terminal for a period of 10 years, starting in March 2022.

Already well established in Lebanon, the CMA CGM Group today achieves nearly 55% of the volume of the container terminal, in particular through the maintenance of its 9 weekly calls and its transhipments. 33 million dollars will be invested in the terminal of the Port of Beirut, including 19 million during the first two years.

This investment will allow: the complete upgrading of equipment: rehabilitation, replacement, acquisition of new port equipment; the construction of a new technical hangar for maintenance and storage of spare parts; the digital transformation of the terminal, through the implementation of the most advanced systems in terms of management, optimization and interconnection of operations and of the various operators in the port community; the search for environmental performance, in particular through the acquisition of less polluting equipment. In order to carry out its entire development project for the terminal, CMA CGM will rely on its expertise and that of the teams of the outgoing operator.

The CMA CGM Group, whose story began in Lebanon 43 years ago, is very attached to the Port of Beirut, the real economic heart of the capital and the country. After acquiring in 2021, all the shares of the operator of the terminal of Tripoli, the country’s second commercial port, CMA CGM confirms its desire to strengthen its port presence in Lebanon, and to participate actively in the support and economic development of the country, thanks to its maritime and port investments, but also in logistics, through its subsidiary CEVA Logistics.

The CMA CGM Group is increasingly committed to playing a major role in the economic reconstruction of Lebanon, following the multiple crises that have shaken the country in recent years. Many projects and investments have been made, and initiatives launched, aimed at supporting different sectors and economic actors, creating jobs, and supporting the Lebanese population, especially its youth: establishment in Beirut of the Levant regional office of CMA CGM; opening of a Digital Hub and creation of a shared services center; industrial investments…

Nearly 800 jobs have thus been created in two years, with the Group now having nearly 1,000 employees in Lebanon. 400 other jobs will be added in the next 12 months.

The management, operation and maintenance of the Port of Beirut container terminal is part of the CMA CGM Group’s development strategy in the terminals. Rodolphe Saadé, Chairman and CEO of the CMA CGM group explains:

“True to our commitments to Lebanon, we will very quickly launch an ambitious investment plan that will make the Beirut container terminal a high-performance terminal that meets the best international standards. It will be at the service of the Lebanese, and paves the way for a renewal of economic exchanges between Lebanon and the rest of the world”.