Maersk’s APM takes 37.5% at Jeddah terminal: Danish shipping heavyweight Maersk — through its terminal arm APM Terminals — agreed to acquire a 37.5% minority stake in the South Container Terminal at Jeddah Islamic Port. UAE ports giant DP World will retain its 62.5% majority stake.

Why this matters

Trading control for security: Maersk can now offer more reliable turnaround times for its own vessels — a critical advantage as Jeddah competes with other regional hubs for transshipment volumes. For DP World, the move cements SCT against regional competition. By bringing Maersk –– one of the world’s most aggressive end-to-end logistics players –– into the fold, they lock in Maersk’s massive volumes for the long term, preventing a potential pivot to competitor facilities like the Red Sea Gateway Terminal.

Watch out for

The multimodal links: We could expect increased synergy between this terminal stake and Maersk’s recently opened 225k sqm logistics park in Jeddah. The goal is a closed-loop logistics system where Maersk controls the ship, the berth, the warehouse, and the truck.

The case for Jeddah: Major logistics leaders are making a play for Jeddah — with Medlog — the cargo subsidiary of Mediterranean Shipping Company inking a SAR 137 mn investment agreement to build an integrated logistics zone within Jeddah’s Third Industrial City earlier this week.

Background

DP World’s footprints are already at STC: DP World secured a 30-year build-operate-transfer(BOT) concession for the terminal from Mawani back in 2019. Under the initial agreement, the logistics heavyweight earmarked a USD 500 mn investment figure to improve and revamp the port, including expanding its infrastructure to better handle ultra-large container carriers.

Tags: