2M carriers didn’t learn P3 lessons, FMC commissioner says WASHINGTON — Maersk Line and Mediterranean Shipping Co. appear to have the same confidence that Chinese regulators will approve their “2M” vessel-sharing agreement as they did before China’s rejection of the P3 Network, said U.S. Federal Maritime Commissioner Richard Lidinsky. “It’s deja vu all over again,” said Lidinsky, the sole FMC commissioner to cast a vote against the P3, quoting professional baseball player and wit Yogi Berra. “It’s like they didn’t learn anything in dealing with China; you have to deal with the government with respect,” he told JOC. Based on media reports he’s seen, the two largest global container lines are treating regulatory approval like “just a box to be ticked off,” said Lidinsky, who hasn’t spoken to Maersk and MSC directly about the 2M. During a second-quarter earnings call last month, Maersk Group CEO Nils Andersen told investors that European and Chinese authorities would look at the 2M, but it wasn’t subject to their approval. He did hedge in acknowledging that Chinese regulators might not automatically approve the VSA. FMC Commissioner William Doyle said on Tuesday that he hopes to learn how Chinese regulators will approach the “2M” during a trip to Shanghai in November, as he wants to get details from the authorities themselves, not via media reports. Lidinsky said he believes that the 2M will or has been filed with the Shanghai Shipping Exchange, a quasi government agency under the purview of China’s Ministry of Transport. Lidinsky believes the MOT could still seek to involve the Ministry of Commerce, the entity that rejected the P3 in June, based on what he recalls Chinese regulators saying during a global regulatory summit hosted by the FMC in December to assess the P3. Like Doyle, Lidinsky wants to ask the Maersk and MSC questions on the proposed 2M but declined to disclose what specific issues. A majority decision from five-member commission is required to stop the FMC’s 45-day review in order to pose questions to the two carriers. If they do receive questions from the FMC, Maersk and MSC wouldn’t have a time limit on answering the queries, but the agency’s 45-day review clock would restart only once the carriers responded to the questions. Lidinsky said he expects FMC staff to make a recommendation regarding 2M to commissioners by the end of the month. If the FMC doesn’t vote to pose questions to the duo, the agency review would to expire Oct. 11. The 2M, which Maersk and MSC hope to launch early next year, would involve a total of 185 vessels with an estimated capacity of 2.1 million TEUs on 21 strings. Maersk and MSC would be able to consolidate their services around fewer but bigger ships through the VSA. As a result, they would be able to lower their per-container operating costs and gain cost advantages over carriers and others alliances that operate smaller ships. JOC NEWS - SEPT 4 2014
Posted on: Fri, 05 Sep 2014 04:44:07 +0000
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