French-headquartered shipping line CMA CGM has entered into exclusive discussions with Neptune Orient Lines (NOL) to potentially acquire to third-largest container shipping company.
“Should these discussions lead to an agreement, such a combination would contribute to the consolidation of the container shipping industry, at a time when scale is more critical than ever,” CMA CGM said in a statement released 22 November.
'It would further reinforce CMA CGM as a global force in container shipping, leveraging the strong geographic and operational complementarity of both groups.”
The exclusivity period is expected to run until 7 December 2015, according to CMA CGM.
NOL has been seeking a buyer for several months, previously confirming it had been in preliminary discussions with Denmark's Maersk as well as CMA CGM in regards to a potential acquisition of NOL.
