Based on Alphaliner’s latest report, French container shipping powerhouse CMA CGM has officially crossed the 4 million TEU mark in operated capacity. This growth cemented its position as the third-largest container carrier globally, leaving behind MSC (6.7 million TEU) and Maersk (4.6 million TEU).
This new milestone not only highlights CMA CGM’s impressive fleet growth, but also reflects the group’s sustained long-term strategy in a highly competitive global market. The company, privately owned by the Saadé family, has quadrupled in size over the past 16 years.
Back in June 2009, CMA CGM celebrated its first million TEU milestone. By 2016, it had doubled to 2 million TEU, then reached 3 million TEU by 2021. Now, in 2025, it has hit the 4 million mark.
From its modest beginnings in Marseille in 1978, CMA CGM has grown into a global leader through a mix of organic expansion and strategic acquisitions. Key milestones in its external growth include the takeovers of the French state-owned CGM (1996), Australia’s national carrier ANL (1998), French West Africa-focused Delmas (2005), and American President Lines (APL) in 2016.
Alongside these headline-grabbing acquisitions, CMA CGM has also absorbed numerous regional carriers over the years, including MacAndrews, Cheng Lie Navigation, U.S. Lines, COMANAV, OPDR, Mercosul Line, Sofrana Unilines, and Containerships Oy.
As of today, CMA CGM and its regional affiliates operate a vast fleet of 683 container ships, both owned and chartered, ranging from small 125 TEU feeder vessels to the cutting-edge LNG-powered “Megamax” giants capable of carrying close to 24,000 TEU. The CMA CGM JACQUES SAADE class stands as a flagship example of this new era in green mega-shipping.
Its current orderbook consists of 95 container vessels with a combined capacity of 1.5 million TEU. This is the second-largest capacity in the industry, just behind MSC’s 2.2 million TEU on order.
This robust orderbook includes a dozen more 24,000 TEU Megamaxes, alongside more than 30 LNG-powered ships in the 19,000 TEU range. All of this puts CMA CGM in a strong position to potentially challenge Maersk for the number two spot in global rankings, especially as the Danish carrier has signaled that it is not seeking to grow its fleet much beyond its current level, focusing instead on replacing aging vessels.
