Hambantota International Port Group (HIPG) has held discussions with CMA CGM and Evergreen Marine Corporation about new container services at the southern port, citing West Asian instability that is pushing global shipping lines to seek alternative trade routes.
CMA CGM is the world’s third-largest container carrier and Evergreen is among the top six. Their interest in Hambantota represents the first publicly disclosed approach by Tier-1 lines since Brent crossed $100 a barrel on Hormuz disruption and Trump’s Project Freedom escort transit recast Indian Ocean shipping economics.
Hambantota Port is positioned 10 nautical miles off the main East-West shipping route, which HIPG argues makes it a viable diversion hub. “The port’s expanding infrastructure, including increased container yard capacity and ongoing investments in handling equipment, has positioned it to shifting demand,” said Theresa Liu, Senior Deputy General Manager for Commercial and Marketing. She added that the port had “demonstrated operational resilience during recent regional disruptions, such as bad weather conditions.”
No formal commercial announcement has been made by either CMA CGM or Evergreen, the company said. Industry observers see the talks as a step toward Hambantota establishing itself as a multi-purpose shipping hub alongside Colombo, which last week absorbed a record 24,346 TEU MSC call at the southern facility.
Hambantota has been operated by China Merchants Port Holdings under a 99-year lease since 2017. The HIPG disclosure was reported by EconomyNext on Sunday.
Source: EconomyNext.
