2M Alliance

1. General information about 2M Allicance :

• The 2M Alliance is a container vessel-sharing agreement between Mediterranean Shipping Company (MSC) and Maersk.
• The 10-year contract between the Swiss-based MSC and the Danish company Maersk was signed in 2015 and has a 2-year notice before termination.
• In January 2023, the two carriers announced the ending of the Alliance. This means the contract will  end in January 2025 because of the termination period stated in the agreement.

2. Reason of establishing 2M alliance: :

• Initially, the alliance was formed to ensure competitive and cost-efficient operations on the Asia-Europe, Transpacific, and Transatlantic trades
• MSC and Maersk recognize that much has changed since the two companies signed the 10-year agreement in 2015. Discontinuing the 2M alliance paves the way for both companies to continue to pursue their individual strategies,

3. Benefits of the 2M Alliance :

• Access to container vessels among members meant an increase in each other’s capacity.
• The increased utilization rate of the ships by the different parties.
• Access to new sailing routes and markets for the member partners.

4.The Impact of Termination Of The 2M Alliance :

• The former members will try remodeling their services after the alliance to set themselves apart. We expect this in a manageable amount of time as they can also retain what worked for them during the alliance period.
• There might be some aggressive scramble for the market share they controlled in the Transpacific, Asia-Europe, and Transatlantic routes. The two carriers might want to establish dominance over each other to control the routes, brewing some competition.
• While not certain, the two might opt to join other alliances that might offer new and different benefits or continue it out solo. The outcome of the decision will also impact their service pricing to stay competitive.
• MSC has been increasing its fleet over time, overtaking Maersk as the biggest carrier. It will be interesting to see how Maersk responds to this post the alliance to maintain the same service level it had in the alliance.

READ MORE

READ MORE

Founded by Captain Gianluigi Aponte, MSC Mediterranean Shipping Company (MSC) is a privately owned shipping line founded in 1970 and headquartered in Geneva (Switzerland) since 1978.
The Company’s international headquarters supervise a worldwide network of offices with each having responsibility for commercial and operational activities in their respective countries.
MSC is a world leader in global transportation and is part of the MSC Group shipping conglomerate, a global business engaged in the transport and logistics sector.
The Group encompasses a Cargo Division with MSC Mediterranean Shipping Company (MSC), Terminal Investment Limited (TiL), MEDLOG, MedTug and a Passenger Division led by MSC Cruises and complemented by Mediterranean passenger ferries with Grandi Navi Veloci (GNV) and SNAV.

MSC | IN VIETNAM

The first MSC containers were exported from Vietnam in 2002 and at that time, MSC was represented by a third-party agent. In 2005, MSC established our own office in the country and over the years, we have grown our local presence. We now have a total of over 160 employees in three offices in major economic hubs across Vietnam: Ho Chi Minh City, Hanoi, and Hai Phong, and are also represented by third-party agencies in Da Nang and Quy Nhon.

KEY FIGURES

760 vessels
300 routes
520 ports of call
22.5M TEU carried annually
155 countries
675 offices
180K MSC Group employees