CMA CGM adds seasonal Pisco call to PAD service in December

CMA CGM will add a seasonal call at Pisco, Peru, to its Panama Direct (PAD) service starting in December, according to a report by DynaLiners. The addition extends an already long rotation that links Australia and New Zealand with the US East Coast and North Europe.

Behind the new port call sits a structural change. A new agreement filed with the US Federal Maritime Commission, read together with CMA CGM's planned vessel deployment, indicates the PAD service has become a standalone CMA CGM operation rather than a shared venture. DynaLiners, the industry service that tracks liner networks, drew that conclusion from the filing.

What changes for the partners?

Marfret, the French carrier that previously supplied vessels to the service, is understood to be staying on board in a different role. It will participate as a slot charterer, buying space on CMA CGM-operated tonnage instead of contributing ships.

For CMA CGM, the shift consolidates operational control of the loop under its own flag. The Marseille-based group markets the service commercially as NASP, its in-house brand for the trade.

The revised PAD rotation reads as follows:

• Brisbane – Sydney – Melbourne – Tauranga – Pisco – Cartagena – Savannah – Philadelphia – Zeebrugge – Rotterdam – Dunkirk – Le Havre – Cork – New York – Savannah – Kingston – Papeete – Noumea – Brisbane

That is 19 calls spanning five countries on three continents, with Savannah appearing twice in each cycle. The loop gathers cargo in Australia's eastern seaboard ports and New Zealand's Tauranga, runs through the Caribbean transshipment hub of Cartagena, serves the US East Coast, then works a dense North European leg including Zeebrugge, Rotterdam, Dunkirk, Le Havre and Cork before returning via New York, Kingston, Papeete and Noumea.

Why Pisco, and why now?

Pisco sits on Peru's southern coast, south of the capital's port complex at Callao. The call is seasonal, which points to cargo tied to a specific harvest or production window rather than year-round baseline demand. Peruvian exports of agricultural goods such as table grapes, asparagus and citrus move in precisely such seasonal peaks, and a direct call lets shippers bypass a feeder or transshipment leg.

For cargo owners around Pisco, a direct mainline call can shave days off transit and cut the cost and risk of an intermediate handling step. For CMA CGM, slotting Pisco between Tauranga and Cartagena adds a revenue-generating pickup point on a leg of the rotation that would otherwise run loaded light.

What does the standalone shift mean commercially?

The move to standalone status gives CMA CGM sole discretion over schedule, vessel assignment and capacity on the loop. Carriers running their own strings can adjust tonnage, skip ports or add seasonal calls — exactly what the Pisco decision demonstrates — without negotiating with a vessel-sharing partner.

For Marfret, the slot-charterer role preserves market access to the Australia–New Zealand–US East Coast–North Europe trade without the capital burden of deploying its own ships. Slot charterers typically trade flexibility for lower exposure: they keep their brand and bill of lading in the market while leaving vessel economics to the operator.

Forwarders and BCO customers on the lane will see little immediate difference in documentation or branding — CMA CGM has marketed the service as NASP, and bookings continue through the same commercial channels. The December start of the Pisco call gives South Peruvian exporters a direct mainline option for the coming season.

Further seasonal adjustments to the rotation, or confirmation of Marfret's longer-term participation, would be expected in subsequent FMC filings as the December start approaches.