Summer 2014

51

GROUP MAGA ZINE

SUMMER 2014

Printed on paper manufactured using a minimum of 60 % recycled fibre and 40 % virgin pulp from
certified sources.
CMA CGM Marseille Head Office
4, quai d'Arenc 13235 Marseille cedex 02 France
Tl : +33 (0)4 88 91 90 00
www.cmacgm.com

04 AROUND THE WORLD

06 GROUP LIFE

A GROUP AT THE HEART OF AFRICA

12 SUSTAINABILITY

RIVERWAY TRANSPORT
An economic and environmental opportunity

14 FOCUS

CAMEROON
One of the most diversified economies in Central Africa

18 FACE TO FACE

WEBCOR
Set to lead in Africa

ED I TO R I A L

CO NT ENT

Editorial and publication Director: Tanya Saad Zeenny Editor: Marianne Lacroix Editing: Herv Gallet
Coordination: Olivia Simonetti Graphic Design: CMA CGM Studio Damien Boulanger, David Darmon,
Katia Egea, Bastien Rgis Printing and distribution supervision: Christine Nunes Contributors: Alain
Aurouseau, Thierry Conte, Gilles Duffaut, Mathieu Friedberg, Guillaume Hue, Denis Laure, Claude
Lebel, Alexis Michel, Joop Mijland, Sylvain Prevot, Ludovic Renou, Bertrand Simion, Alain Wils
Photos crdits: CMA CGM, Shutterstock, Thierry Dosogne Number of issues: 22,000 ISN: 1287-8863

CMACGM

RODOLPHE
SA A D
CMA CGM
Vice-Chairman
and Executive Officer

With the launching of many new projects, the

year 2014 is opening new opportunities for the
CMA CGM Group in Africa. This continent has a
special place in our story. We have been present
there since 2001 as CMA CGM and well before
that through DELMAS, which we acquired in 2006.
Teams from both companies have been brought
together in Marseilles and are now being led by
the same executive management. Today, we are
the leading transport company in Africa and this
continent is more than ever at the heart of our
development strategy.
Growing investments in por t infrastructures
enable us to constantly improve our offer, making
it possible for us to deploy ships with a capacity
of 5,700 TEU, the largest container ships serving
West Africa. We have also improved our maritime
services with five weekly lines from China and we
are the only company with service to the port of
Buchanan, Liberia.
In addition, we are continuing to expand our
sales network which currently has more than 72
offices in 43 countries. We are also putting special
emphasis on our land investments, a Group priority,
by opening logistics platforms and developing new
intermodal transport solutions. All these actions
enable us to provide our African customers with
tailor-made solutions that are truly suited to their
needs.

Our Group continues to expand and invest outside

of Africa as well. We have just taken delivery of the
CMA CGM DANUBE, the first of a series of 28 new
9,400 TEU ships, which are specifically designed
to navigate the Strait of the Bosphorus; these
ships will enable us to provide our customers with
a better transport offer. We have also launched a
number of major projects such as revamping our
information system with SAP.
We will continue to offer transport solutions that are
even more innovative while maintaining the most
stringent requirements and highest level of service
quality and keeping costs under control. It is this
development strategy that will allow our Group to
continue to set the standard for our customers and
partners.

Today, we are the leading transport

company in Africa and this continent is
more than ever at the heart of our
development strategy.

22 TRIBUTE

TRISTAN VIELJEUX
A historic figure in the French shipping industry

S U M M ER 2 014

AROUND THE WORLD

AROUND
THE WORLD
"CONTAINERS OF HOPE", THE CMA CGM FOUNDATION
RENEWS ITS HUMANITARIAN TRANSPORT OPERATION TO AFRICA
In response to the humanitarian and social needs of a number of African countries, the
Foundation decided to offer the benefit of CMA CGM's knowledge and expertise to some
major French NGOs. In 2012, the Foundation launched a huge humanitarian operation in
Africa, Containers of Hope. To date, 170 containers packed with 1,340 tons of food aid,
medicines, and equipment have been shipped thanks to the programme.
With its Containers of Hope operation, the CMA CGM Group uses vessels on its lines to
provide free container shipping of humanitarian aid. To achieve this goal, the Foundation
avails of Group facilities in 43 African countries, with 72 agencies and 48 stopover ports,
and relies on the support of NGOs that are there on the ground with the most vulnerable
populations.
To meet the needs outlined by its partners, the CMA CGM Foundation is renewing the
programme this year with NGOs Mdecins Sans Frontires (Doctors Without Borders) and
Action contre la Faim (Action against Hunger), as well as expanding the operation to other
continents. That's in addition to a new partnership with Handicap International, which aims
to help children in vulnerable populations.
"Children are the first to fall victim to malnutrition and the ones most at risk when healthcare
is lacking. For many years now we have been backing organisations that work to help
underprivileged children. With the Containers of Hope operation, we sought to go further
by lending our support to NGOs that are active in Africa. Right now, we are strengthening
existing projects and extending our activities to other continents", said Nala Saad,
President of the CMA CGM Corporate Foundation for Children.
Since 2012, the Containers of Hope operation has enabled us to provide aid to around
twelve African countries, in the form of nutritional or healthcare programmes that are
implemented on the ground by Mdecins Sans Frontire and Action contre la Faim.
The Containers of Hope operation is overseen by the Corporate Foundation and made
possible thanks to the involvement of dozens of Group staffmenbers along the logistical
chain. This includes people from the Group's headquarters in Marseilles and in local CMA
CGM agencies, as well as shipboard personnel sailing the Group's lines.

S U M M ER 2 014

CMA CGM AND HILLEBRAND,

PARTNERS IN AN EXCEPTIONNAL
WINE-SHIPPING OPERATION

A NEW OFFER FROM BL

DIRECT IN AFRICA FOR MORE
FLEXIBILITY

To celebrate the 80th anniversary

of the Confrrie des Chevaliers du
Tastevin (which can be translated as
the Brotherhood of the Knights of
the Wine-Tasting Cup), CMA CGM
has partnered with JF Hillebrand,
which specialises in wine and spirits
logistics, for a once-off operation
to transport 420 bottles of fine
Burgundy wines around the world.
The goal of the operation is to
demonstrate that ocean transport
has no effect on the taste of wine.

To offer its African customers

products that are even better suited
to their needs, the Group has just
launched "FlexCost TBL", a new
format for BL Direct that gives
customers more flexibility in terms of
dividing up costs.

Four hundred and twenty bottles

were loaded on board the CMA
CGM MANET on 14th June, packed
inside a reefer at a remotely
controlled temperature to ensure
optimal preservation of the wine.
After a round-the-world trip taking
in New York, Panama, Papeete,
Singapore, Cochin, Suez, Malta,
and other stops along the way, the
bottles will be unloaded at Le Havre
on 18 September. The Confrrie
des Chevaliers du Tastevin will then
organise a special tasting event in
October, whereupon the globetrotting wines will be compared
to identical bottles that never left
Burgundy.

The carrier guarantees a

comprehensive service that avoids
the complications and risks involved
with trans-shipment in Africa. Under
the same contract, suppliers and
consignees can divide up costs,
import or export, and more (for
instance, the supplier could pay at
the transit port and the consignee
could pay at the final destination).
As a reminder, the CMA CGM
Group and its DELMAS brand offer
a BL Direct service that ensures
end-to-end handling of your cargo.
Procedures, sea, ground, transit, the
Group takes care of everything to
make its customers' lives easier.

COME AND SEE US AT OUR STANDS!

The CMA CGM Group will be attending
the following trade shows:
Maputo International Fair (FACIM)
in Maputo (Mozambique)
from August 25 to 31
Asia Fruit Logistica in Hong Kong
from September 3 to 5
World Food in Moscow (Russia)
from September 15 to 18
EXPOTRANS in Luanda (Angola)
from September 20 to 30
Breakbulk America in Houston (USA)
from September 29 to October 2
International Logistics and
Transportation Fair in Shenzhen
(China)
from October 14 to 16

GROUP LIFE

According to many experts, the African continent will experience the greatest economic
expansion of the 21st century. This conviction is shared by the CMA CGM Group which
has been developing an unrivalled network of shipping and intermodal lines for many
years now. A description of Africa: a continent that is moving forward and becoming
increasingly open to the world.

Today, the eyes of economic experts, analysts,

and forecasters are all turning to the continent
of Africa. For them there is no doubt: with more
than 900 million inhabitants already, SubSaharan Africa will be home to more than a
third of the planet's population by the end of
the century and the world will have to take this
reality into account.
In addition to these demographic changes,
Sub-Saharan Africa could see 6 % growth in
2014 and the increase in GDP is expected to
remain between 5 % and 10 % over the next
few years. In addition, the average per capita

S U M M ER 2 014

income in the region has risen by 30 % over the

past ten years, as a middle class with a growing
demand for consumer and capital goods has
emerged.
For a long time, some believed that this growth
was only generated by rising prices for raw
materials (mainly oil and mining products),
which brought in additional income and local
investments. However, figures dating from
1995-2010 indicate that eight of the twelve SubSaharan African countries with the strongest
growth did not exploit these types of resources
during that period.

GROUP LIFE

A GROUP AT THE HEART OF AFRICA

These nations created a virtuous circle through

major structural reforms that generated investment capacities, some of which were used for
the new infrastructure Africa needed. While it is
undoubtedly true that South Africa acted as an
economic driver for the continent as a whole,
all the countries in Africa undertook and maintained real forward progress. Case in point:
Nigeria is today the strongest Sub-Saharan
African economy (ahead of South Africa) and
ranks 26th worldwide.
Finally, we must not forget that Africa possesses 65 % of the world's arable land and that
in the future this continent will feed the world.

CMA CGM: THE AFRICAN

EXPERT

African countries are located in landlocked

areas far away from any access to the sea.
While others might see this as a problem,
CMA CGM considers it an opportunity. In fact,
the number 3 shipping company in the world
has made intermodal transport one of its main
specialities and put it at the centre of its African
strategy.
CMA CGM acquired DELMAS from the Bollor
Group in 2006. Thanks to the company's
140-year presence in Africa, this acquisition
enabled the CMA CGM Group, which already
had an African presence, to extend its geographic coverage and its ambitions, and provide its
customers with a more comprehensive service
offer.

Through its line operators, CMA CGM and

Delmas, the CMA CGM Group is one of the
leaders in shipping that connects Africa to the
rest of the world. Through shipping companies traditionally tended to limit their service
to African ports, the current political and
economic context requires that they move
closer to their customers; to do so, they must
have a presence in inland areas as well as in
ports.

While others might see this as a

problem, CMA CGM considers it an

opportunity.

One need only look at a map to understand how

complicated it is to trade there when so many

S U M M ER 2 014

"CMA CGM in Africa currently has 72 agencies

and offices in 43 countries, 1,300 employees,
25 direct lines, 80 dedicated ships, 48 ports
of call, and 12 main overland corridors, with
1,200,000 TEU transported in 2013 and a forecasted 1,400,000 TEU for 2014." This analysis
comes from Mathieu Friedberg, Vice-President

of African lines for the CMA CGM Group. "Our

ambition is above all to work with Africa as it
develops and our strategy is based on bespoke
and door-to-door service." he continues.
For businesses around the world that want to
trade with Africa through imports or exports,
the challenge is not so much about connecting
the continent to Asia, Europe, or the Americas,
as it is about moving goods between African
ports and to the continent's inland areas.
Transporting containers beyond port boundaries to the most remote inland destinations
is not always easy! Many problems have to
be overcome: lack of infrastructure, weather
conditions that make roads impassable, internal
conflicts, bureaucratic constraints, and the
problem of "road harassment" that occurs
when many borders must be crossed. As a
result, sometimes it takes a truck 14 days to
travel 1,000 km! This limits the development of
commerce, especially the trade in agricultural
commodities.
Faced with this situation, the CMA CGM Group
decided to get directly involved and extend its
range of services beyond its traditional maritime
activities and ports of call, as Gilles Duffaut,
Intermodal Africa Director, explains: "Our overland activities in Africa started many years
ago when we established a service through
which the CMA CGM Group is responsible for
its customers' goods and their transportation
to final destinations in inland areas of coastal
countries or in landlocked countries. With one
document, the B/L Direct (BLD), we take full
responsibility for transport, including organising
rail or road transport (or a combination of both),

Our ambition is above all to work

with Africa as it develops and our
strategy is based on bespoke and
door-to-door service.
no matter many steps it takes before the goods
reach their final destination."
CMA CGM acts on the customer's behalf,
organising all shipping and overland transport,
as well as transit formalities if cross-border
transport is involved. To do so, the Group relies
on its organisations in each country, whose
knowledge of the area enables them to overcome any obstacles in the form of complicated
bureaucratic procedures. "When they put us in
charge of the whole transport process, customers know that we will do everything possible
to overcome any local issues and deliver their
goods." Gilles Duffaut notes.
The value of this approach is demonstrated by
the fact that the number of containers transported under B/L Direct in 2013 grew by 25 %
compared with 2012; the Group expects a
similar increase in 2014.

GROUP LIFE

A GROUP AT THE HEART OF AFRICA

THE FUTURE: DEVELOPING

INTERMODAL SERVICE AND
BESPOKE OFFERS
CMA CGM has many solutions available for the
various maritime and inland challenges. "We
are assigning larger and larger ships on our
African lines, such as the 5,700 TEU ships which
significantly increase trade capacities." remarks
Mathieu Friedberg.
Now that a number of public and private investments are making it possible to increase the
number of deep-water ports, the next step in
the rapid expansion of trade in Africa will involve
improving overland links.
Just a few years ago, inland transport was
evenly divided between road and rail (50/50).
Today, road transport has taken the lead with
75 %, while trains make up only 25 %. This difference is a result of the amount of investment
needed to create or improve rail links. Thus, it is
the more flexible and responsive road network
that is supporting Africa's robust growth.
To ensure a comprehensive service offer,
the CMA CGM Group has already developed
a series of road and/or rail corridors that it
operates in partnership with local transport
companies. It can thus guarantee high-quality,
fast, and reliable service.
In terms of inland links, there is still a good
deal of room for improvement; Sylvain Prvot,

10

S U M M ER 2 014

Inland Activities Project Manager, sees developing logistical services as a way to respond to
customer needs. He cites the Dakar-Bamako
corridor as an example. "We have two depots
in the Senegalese port for storing our containers and goods in transit. A high-quality rail line
connects Dakar to the Malian capital, where
there is another perfectly organised depot. Thus,
importing and exporting happens in a fast, fluid,
and structured manner."
This shining example of an intermodal connection encapsulates everything that the Group
is putting in place between Cte dIvoire and
Burkina Faso, Benin and Niger, Cameroon
and Chad, Kenya and Uganda, Mozambique
and Zimbabwe, and many other destinations
as well. "Once again, it was to meet its customers' expectations that the Group added a new
corridor connecting Lubumbashi, in the Democratic Republic of the Congo's Katanga province,
to Walvis Bay, Namibia." Gilles Duffaut explains.
"This 2,500-kilometre long corridor, which is
the newest addition to the other corridors we
already operate out of Dar es Salaam, Tanzania,
and Beira, Mozambique, provides us with the
flexibility we need to prevent congestion and
reduce transit times."
By putting money into developing overland
transport to support its customers and become
even more competitive, the CMA CGM Group
is thus making an important strategic decision.

RISING INVESTMENTS
For several years now, CMA CGM has been
increasing its investments aimed at strengthening
its African presence in any area where the Group
does not already have its own base of operations.
CMA CGM thus connected its maritime services
to the Copper Belt, the copper-producing region
that stretches from Zambia to Katanga and
opened offices in Lubumbashi in eastern DRC,
in Lusaka, Zambia, and in Harare, Zimbabwe.
In October 2013, CMA CGM met growing demand
by opening a service to Mogadishu, Somalia,
leaving from Mombasa, Kenya. Now, there is
service to fourteen new inland destinations in the
country.
"In Africa, everything will depend on intermodal
service; the CMA CGM Group's intention is
to create a service offer that is even more
comprehensive and efficient, particularly by
setting up corridors, but also by establishing
logistical platforms where we can better store
our containers, load or unload our customers'
goods, carry out door-to-door delivery of these
goods, and thus have better control over the
inland phase of intermodal deliveries." Sylvain
Prvot continues.
These logistical platforms enable CMA CGM to
further develop its Reefer activities; these refrigerated containers make it possible to transport
perishable goods over very long distances. In the
future, frozen fish, mangoes, and fruit juice could
be exported in large quantities and under optimal

conditions to every corner of the globe from

any production site in Africa, while landlocked
countries could also receive fresh products
imported from all over. This would be a seismic
shift in the African inland transport landscape!
"The rapid expansion of the African economy is
priority for the entire Group and we are devoting
all our attention and efforts to it." states Gilles
Duffaut, who knows that having a network of
agencies in nearly every country on the continent
is an unparalleled asset.
This dual solution, incorporating both maritime
and overland transport, has enabled CMA CGM
to become number one in many African countries.
In fact, the Group is the only one that offers so
many overland destinations with this level of
complexity.
"By opening up landlocked countries to the world,
facilitating their exports and imports, investing
in infrastructure, and believing in its African
employees, the CMA CGM Group is playing
a major role in the development of the African
continent with its unique opportunities." Mathieu
Friedberg concludes.

11

SUSTAINABILITY

RIVERWAY
TRANSPORT
An economic and
environmental opportunity

Gennevilliers port, north of Paris, France, a self-propelled barge has just arrived at the dock. Having
left Le Havre the night before, she travelled up the Seine carrying around one hundred containers from
Asia. At a time when carbon footprints constitute a major issue for our planet, barges have become
a viable alternative to trucks as a complement to shipping when hauling goods to inland areas.
For the CMA CGM Group, developing this mode of transport is a major priority.

FROM THE SEINE TO THE PEARL RIVER

In France, the Seine, the Rhne, and the Sane
corridors are becoming busier and busier. On the Seine,
for example, the CMA CGM Group currently operates
three weekly services between Le Havre and Paris,
transporting more than 35 % of its volumes between
the two cities by barge.
On the Rhine corridor, barge services are even more
developed and connect fifteen inland terminals, from
Rotterdam to Basel, Dortmund, Duisburg, Cologne,
Koblenz, Mainz, Frankfurt, Mannheim, Ludwigshafen,
Wrth, Stuttgart, Strasbourg, and Ottmarsheim. "The
whole of the industrial Ruhr basin can thus be served by
river, using road service for the first or last kilometres,
as these require flexible and secure solutions. The
CMA CGM Group use barges for more than 60 % of its
pre- and post-transport on the Rhine corridor." remarks
Joop Mijland.
Whether the barges are on the Seine, the Rhone or the
Rhine, their schedules are naturally in line with those of
the Line ships, thereby minimising end-to-end transit
times.

With greenhouse gas emissions that are 6 times lower

than those of trucks, a transport capacity equal to 3
trains or 100 trucks, a low risk of accidents, and no
noise pollution, the riverway transport statistics speak
for themselves.
For the CMA CGM Group, riverway transport is a
strategic component of the robust environmental policy
it has deployed for many years now. In this context,
CMA CGM has developed a comprehensive offer for
its customers, including barges operated directly by
its Greenmodal subsidiary, which specialises in multimodal transport in Europe, pre- or post-carrier haulage
services by barge, or a combined transport option. The
goal? Support the development of more environmentally-friendly modes of transport. "This respect for the
environment, an increasingly important issue for our
customers, is contributing to developing "overland"
container haulage by barge in Europe.

12

S U M M ER 2 014

River terminals are gaining the necessary infrastructure

and the service offers are constantly increasing",
explains Joop Mijland, Vice-President Global Intermodal for the Group's Marseilles head office.
While the advantages are undeniable, this mode of
transport does have one obvious limiting factor: riverways are much harder to come by than roads! Thus, in
the United States, barges are rarely, if ever, used; trains
are much more common. In Europe and Asia, on the
other hand, barges are a means of transport that are
being used with increasing frequency, particularly on
the Rhine corridor, and on the Seine and the Rhone as
well, though there remains much progress to be made.

Though much less well-known, the Chinese riverway

network is extremely developed. It represents an
important corridor for reaching inland regions, via the
Pearl River in southern China and the Yangtze River
in central China. The ability to transport containerised
goods far inland on barges is an important factor
considering that the Chinese government is looking to
transfer production zones from coastal cities to ones
located in the interior of the country and that respect for
the environment is becoming a priority. Through these
riverways, Chongqing, the world's most populous city,
located more than 1,700 km from the coast, is directly
connected to Yangshan (Shanghai), the world's largest
port.
The Pearl River Delta serves one of China's largest
industrial zones, the Pearl River Delta Economic
Zone. With a population of 57 million people, this zone

includes nine prefectures, in addition to two "special"

regions: Hong Kong and Macau. This region has
proven to be the most dynamic since the launch of
economic reforms in 1979 and is maintaining its status
as an enormous export market, while also importing an
increasing amount of goods and services.
According to Ludovic Renou, CMA CGM Director for
the South China Region based in Shenzhen, the Group
is in an optimal position: "Of the half-million containers
the Group transports through its Intermodal service
annually, 99 % are shipped by barge. The CMA CGM
Group, which operates its own barges from Huangpu
to Nansha, Chiwan, and Hong Kong, encourages its
customers to choose this option with an offer covering
more than 72 river ports."
Another advantage is that barges can be used to
transport special loads and XXL or project cargo that
are not containerised.
By opting for barges whenever possible and playing an
active role in the development of this mode of transport
for overland haulage, the CMA CGM Group is resolutely
affirming its commitment to environmental protection
and sustainable development.

In France, the CMA CGM Group,

through its GREENMODAL subsidiary,
operates 8 self-propelled barges,
serves 10 ports, transporting more than
90 940 TEU by riverway in 2013.

13

FOCUS

One of the most diversified

economies in Central Africa

Nicknamed "Africa in miniature" due to its large

cultural and geographic diversity, Cameroon is an
extremely complex country that is home to more
than 200 ethnic groups. Local conditions, geographic
constraints and a lack of infrastructure are just some
of the many challenges the Group faces in providing
its customers with a comprehensive and reliable
transportation offer.

14

S U M M ER 2 014

In times of complex economic conditions, industrial

and financial actors keep their eyes fixed on indicators from ratings agencies. The good news for
Cameroon is that one of the main agencies, Standard
& Poors, just affirmed their B rating for the country.
In addition to judging the outlook to be stable, the
agency emphasized promising economic indicators
despite increases in government deficits.

Among the positive points, Standard & Poors

highlighted agricultural production boosted by
favourable meteorological conditions. Additionally,
economic growth was aided by public infrastructure
projects, especially investments for improving the
road network and constructing the deep-water port
in Kribi, a coastal town located on the Gulf of Guinea
in southern Cameroon.

15

FOCUS

CAMEROON

A glance at a map illustrates how crucial these last two

projects are for this central African nation. Wedged
between Nigeria, Chad, the Central African Republic,
Gabon, the Republic of the Congo, and Equatorial
Guinea, Cameroon possesses 600 km of coastline on
the Atlantic Ocean but only one major port. Though
Yaound is the country's official capital, Douala is
the economic powerhouse due to its openness to the
world. This is true despite the fact that the port is one
of the most difficult to access in West Africa, due in
part to the low flow depth on the river.

A GROWING ECONOMY
Alain Aurousseau, who has been the CMA CGM General
Manager of Cameroon since 2013 after holding positions in Djibouti and the United States, faces these
challenges on a daily basis. "Cameroon constitutes
an important opportunity for the CMA CGM Group",
he explains. Gateway to Chad and CAR, last year the
Cameroonian port was the transit site for 160,000
import TEU (including metal, construction materials,
foodstuffs, and electrical equipment) and 110,000
export TEU; of these totals, CMA CGM shipped 40,000
import TEU and 30,000 export TEU of goods.

has experienced stable 10 % annual growth, there

are always a dozen or so ships at the entrance to the
estuary, waiting for the water to rise enough so that they
can file into the estuary and reach the port. There new
problems await them, such as access to docks that are
already crowded with containers. "The bonded areas for
storing boxes are occupied at 120 % of capacity! It would
be necessary to develop new areas to ease congestion
at the Terminal", Alain Aurousseau points out.

Cameroon constitutes an
important opportunity for
the CMA CGM group.

"Timber as logs or boards constitutes 70 % of the

Group's exports to Europe and Asia, the remaining
30 % being made up of cotton, cocoa beans, coffee,
rubber, sesame, and bananas", Alain Aurousseau notes.
"Each week, 70 forty-foot reefer containers filled with
bananas set sail for Dunkirk, with a record transit time
of 18 days."

A PROMISING FUTURE

Located at the site of the ancient Bamum, Adamawa,

and Garwand kingdoms, Cameroon was first a German
and then a French colony before attaining its independence in 1960. The natural leader of CEMAC (the
Central African Economic and Monetary Community),
this country of around 500,000 km2 and approximately
20 million inhabitants is often considered a veritable
"Africa in miniature". The reason? It is located midway
down the continent, divided between French and
English-speaking areas, plains and plateau regions,
forests and savannah, and Christian, Muslim, and
Animist religions. Counting oil, timber, cotton, coffee,
and cocoa among its principal resources, Cameroon
itself symbolizes the strengths and challenges of Africa
as a whole.

16

S U M M ER 2 014

For some time now, the Group has been working to

acquire a new logistical base of 20,000 additional
square metres next to the terminal in return for undertaking a major filling and development project. This
year-long project will be completed in July 2014 and
will be operationnal in September.
All these products reach Douala or leave from it on
container ships whose dimensions are limited by
geographic conditions: the port is actually located at
the end of a shallow, 25 km long estuary subject to
both silting and tidal action. The difficulties involved in
navigating the channel prohibit passage to ships with
a draught greater than 6 m. "Our activities are more
influenced by technical obstacles than economic
ones", he notes. In fact, while the Cameroonian market

Where there are rail and road links, as is the case

between Douala and N'Djamena via Ngaoundr,
climate conditions too often hinder trade. "The rainy
season, between June and October, is particularly
affected and often produces landslides. Sometimes it
takes 90 days for a truck to travel 1,600 km." All the
team's efforts are then devoted to watching the shipment of containers in real time through to final delivery,
as the Group has made the quality of its door-to-door
service a priority.

The team also has high hopes for the opening of a new
deep-water coastal port at Kribi, 200 km to the south.
"The first phase of the new port has been completed
with two docks in operation and the second phase, with
two additional docks expected to be put into service,
will be completed in 2019. However, the road linking the
town of Kribi to the Port of Kribi is still under construction and there is no rail link between Kribi and Douala",
notes the General Manager for Cameroon.

"DELMAS/CMA CGM has a long history in Cameroon

and a great familiarity with the country's particular
characteristics which enable us to be proficient in
all the areas necessary for providing, or creating, a
comprehensive service offer to the customer."
Through its three shipping lines, the first linking Cameroon to Northern Europe, the second linking it to India,
Pakistan, and the Persian Gulf, and the third linking it to
China-Cameroon is already connected to the rest of the
world. To further improve the Group's local presence in
this region of Africa, a CMA CGM office was recently
opened in Chad. Now more than ever, through this even
stronger presence, the Group is affirming its desire to
take part in the continent's rapid economic expansion.

17

FACE TO FACE

Created in Kinshasa (Democratic Republic of the Congo) in 1978 by Ali Nehme Nesr, the
WEBCOR Group has now expanded its production and distribution activities to Sub-Saharan
Africa. This is thanks in large part to shipping, a major driver of this expansion.

SET TO LEAD IN AFRICA

From foodstuffs and Fast Moving Consumer Goods

(FMCG) to building and agricultural materials,
WEBCOR markets its own labels and is also the
exclusive distributor of major international brands.
To meet the growing and varied demand of African
markets for foodstuffs and consumer goods, the
WEBCOR Group is currently expanding its largescale distribution model to various Sub-Saharan
African countries. This rise has taken place largely
thanks to the local presence of private import and
marketing companies. With their networks of warehouses, means of transport, and retail outlets, they
provide complete coverage of the various markets.
Today, the Group has an annual business volume
of 30,000 TEU and 300,000 conventional tonnes,

18

S U M M ER 2 014

with 3,000 employees working to comply with the

most stringent quality standards for the products
they distribute.
To do so, the WEBCOR strategy involves developing a comprehensive logistical chain that also
integrates the acquisition of majority stakes in
industrial assets, such as taking over the production lines of Pasta Berruto in Italy, acquiring coffee
washing stations, and establishing a factory for
hulling (shelling coffee beans) in Burundi, for
instance.
To guarantee an efficient supply chain, WEBCOR is
committed to further improving the shipment of its
goods by developing partnerships with the regular
lines.

19

FACE TO FACE

WEBCOR

INTERVIEW
Ccile Payelle, Webcor Group Shipping Lines Manager

What are the main challenges you have to overcome

in order to maintain control of your supply?
First, excellence at every levels! This starts with a positive outlook in every situation and with a Group strategy
that is clear for all our employees. Strong sales management for daily operational returns is also a factor.
In addition, we carry out a regular assessment of our
performance and our strategic decision-making. What
is the concrete value added? What are the opportunity
costs? What is the impact on our activities?
Shipping thus plays a crucial role in our supply chain.
We have one condition, however: we cannot entrust our
supply to a shipping provider that does not maintain
control over its flows.

20

S U M M ER 2 014

Does working in Africa entail any particular limitations?

Though business there is thriving, the market does
possess some structural limitations. The expansion of
international trade is a part of globalisation; the majority
of this trade happens by sea, for reasons of economies
of scale. Ports therefore have a greater role to play as
central hubs and major players for globalisation.
The Ultra Large container ship fleet is likely to continue
to grow, which necessarily put demands on port efficiency and infrastructure. Africa has long been marginalised when it comes to trade because the continent
had little first-rate port infrastructure and was more
oriented towards conventional transport developed
during the colonial era. Now, though, Africa is playing
a very significant role in world trade and is developing
some of the world's busiest ports. But there is much
left to do, in terms of dredging frequency as well as
port management efficiency. Additionally, procedural
constraints with regard to customs and statistics mean
that we must constantly adapt.

What do you expect from a shipping carrier?

That they provide integration of our supply chain. We
want to deal with a partner, not just someone who
supplies freight! We operate in a market that is more
than just responsive; it is highly reactive.
Competition in our local markets is fierce; we have
competitors, some are high-quality and others have a
brief life span and they constantly force us to examine
areas of competitiveness that are always changing. Of
course, freight rates are key to our success. However,
the precarious nature of physical inventories of commodities can disrupt supply, which leads to financial losses
and reduced market share. A delicate balance therefore
exists between the constant need for logistical adjustments and the shipping support service. The quality
of the latter determines whether it is the problem or the
solution.

How would you describe your partnership with

DELMAS and the entire CMA CGM Group?
We respect the people we deal with and we want them
to respect the values that are important to us: ethics,
service quality, and an ability to innovate, as well being
motivated and active.
What we find in DELMAS/CMA CGM is a good understanding of our specific distribution needs, which is
necessary for developing our shared business volume.

21

TRIBUTE

Tristan Vieljeux was one of the most important figures in

the French shipping industry. He was born in 1925 in La
Rochelle, the city where was located the head office of
DELMAS-Vieljeux, a family business founded at the end
of the 19th century.
Having fought in the 2nd Armoured Division led by
General Leclerc during World War II, Tristan Vieljeux
began working in the family business once peace was
declared. He became secretary general in 1953 and
president in 1964.
By acquiring a number of companies, he turned what
had started as small company in 1867 into a major
player in shipping between 1982 and 1991, especially
between Europe and Africa.
When he founded SNCDV (Socit Navale Chargeurs
DELMAS-Vieljeux) and took over the maritime and port
activities of Chargeurs Runis in 1988, he made his
group number one in West Africa.
He further strengthened the company's position by
becoming the first to establish container transport in
Africa and to offer "door-to-door" services.
Over the years, he expanded activities to the Indian
Ocean and developed shipping lines in India, the
Antilles, the Persian Gulf, and more.

On April 30, Tristan Vieljeux,

a man who had a profound impact
on the world of shipping,
passed away at the age of 90.
The CMA CGM Group
wished to honour him.

Then ranking among the top French shipping concerns,

the company led by Tristan Vieljeux came under the
control of the Bollor Group in 1991 and he had to
resign.
He soon found an opportunity to make use of his
expertise by joining Jacques R. Saad in 1996, first
working as an advisor to the Chairman, then becoming
Chairman of the Supervisory Board, and finally serving
as a member of the Board of Directors until 2012. In
2006, Tristan Vieljeux had the satisfaction of seeing
CMA CGM acquire DELMAS and thereby form the third
largest container transport group in the world.

Tristan Vieljeux and Jacques R. Saad

Tristan Vieljeux also presided over the French shipowners association, Comit central des armateurs
franais (now Armateurs de France), from 1972 to 1976.
Respected as much for his wisdom and personality
as for his professional expertise, he was considered a
personal friend by many African heads of state. Many
figures in the maritime industry honoured his memory,
including Jacques R. Saad, Chairman of the CMA
CGM Group: "This great business leader's personal
qualities and his exceptional knowledge of the maritime
industry were priceless. It is not only the CMA CGM
Group but the industry as a whole that has lost one of
its great captains."

It is not only the CMA CGM

Group but the industry as a
whole that has lost one of its
great captains.

Jacques R. Saad

22

S U M M ER 2 014

23

CMA CGM

CMA CGM, et sa marque DELMAS, vous proposent des liaisons maritimes depuis
et vers le monde entier, ainsi que des connexions ferroviaires et routires vers le cur
de lAfrique. Nos agences locales sont votre coute pour dfinir des solutions sur
mesure et soutenir le dveloppement de votre activit.
Choisissez le leader du transport en Afrique, choisissez CMA CGM.