Following settlement of the offer on 16 April, the French container shipping group plans to delist CEVA from the Zurich stock exchange and merge CEVA’s operations into its own. The expanded group will have revenues of over $30bn and will employ 110,000 people, CMA CGM said.
Merging CEVA's operations into the CMA CGM Group will strengthen its position as a worldwide leader in maritime transport and logistics, present in 160 countries, CMA CGM said, adding: “The CMA CGM group will now be able to meet the logistics needs of its customers around the world with a comprehensive range of solutions across the supply chain, including LCL, airfreight, purchase order management, contract logistics or customs clearance.”
A new strategic plan has been drawn up that will attempt to return CEVA to profit and improve its financial performance. CMA CGM said the implementation of CEVA's new strategic plan, prepared jointly with CMA CGM, and the close co-operation between the teams of the two companies “are going to drive an improvement in CEVA's financial performance through investment in information systems, balancing customer segmentation and streamlining the corporate organisation”.
Among the operational initiatives to drive CEVA’s return to profit, CMA CGM said a “CEVA operational centre” will be set up in Marseilles to bring together the management teams and support functions, involving the creation or transfer of around 200 jobs.
It added: “This consolidation will enable the deployment of a coordinated set of structural initiatives, such as: improving productivity by investing in information systems and digital technology; refocusing local teams on customer service; achieving a more balanced customer segmentation; streamlining the corporate organization, in particular by reducing the number of regions and harmonizing processes; implementing more targeted, more customer-focused communication.”
CMA CGM chief executive Rodolphe Saadé said: “This successful transaction marks a major milestone in the history of CMA CGM’s growth. With CEVA, CMA CGM has confirmed its position as a leading worldwide maritime transport and logistics group. We can now offer our customers a complete range of solutions that meet all their needs and set us apart from the competition.”
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