Drewry: 7 operators control over 40% of global port handling

The dominance of the largest global terminal operators (GTOs) has intensified, with the seven largest firms now handling over 40% of global port throughput on an equity-adjusted basis, according to Drewry. Although the total number of GTOs in Drewry’s league tables remained stable at 21 in 2023, the composition has shifted significantly. The latest edition of Drewry’s Global Container Terminal Operators Annual Review and Forecast highlights that Adani, AD Ports Group, and Hapag-Lloyd have now entered the rankings, while the acquisition of SAAM Ports and Bolloré has led to the removal of these two companies from the list.

“The seven largest GTOs all reported equity-adjusted throughput of more than 40 mteu in 2023. While several of the smaller GTOs have clearly stated their intention to expand their portfolios, there are very limited opportunities to close the 30 mteu wide gap that exists between this leading pack and the rest of the table,” Eleanor Hadland, Drewry’s senior analyst for ports and terminals said.

Leading GTOs captured increased share of world market in 2023

Source: Drewry’s Global Container Terminal Operators Annual Review and Forecast 2024/25

Some highlights of this group:

• PSA International retained the top spot in the equity-adjusted rankings, with an equity-adjusted throughput of 62.6 mteu in 2023, up 4.6% over 2022.
• China Merchants moved up to take second place with an equity-adjusted throughput of 55 mteu.
• MSC Group recorded strongest growth, with equity teu up by more than 10% following the acquisition of Bolloré Africa Logistics in December 2022.
• Adani was the highest placed of the new entrants, securing 13th position in the rankings with equity-adjusted throughput of 6.5 mteu. This position is expected to improve next year with strong growth in the Indian market, boosted by international developments.
• Similarly, Drewry expects AD Ports and Hapag-Lloyd to improve upon their rankings in 2024 when the full-year impact of their 2023 acquisitions will be seen.

The 2023 annual growth in equity-adjusted throughput for the 21 GTOs was 2.3%, well above the 0.3% increase in global port handling.

Revenue of terminal operators was mixed at the same time, with the normalisation of congestion-related storage income to pre-Covid levels depressing the additional revenue from inflation-linked tariff increases. The Drewry Global Container Terminal Revenue began an upwards move in the last quarter of the year, driven by robust demand from the US, with the positive momentum accelerating in 1Q24 due to the knock-on effect of the Red Sea crisis, which again increased congestion-related storage income.

“While congestion is starting to ease, the recovery of consumer demand in import-dominant markets will provide continued support to the average revenues reported by the GTOs that are included in the Index”, added Hadland.

The sampled terminal operators’ total capital expenditure (capex) was US$5.5 billion in 2023, growing 9% YoY, the third consecutive annual increase since 2020. Significant organic capacity expansion projects and terminal equipment modernisation efforts led five of the GTOs to spend over US$500 million, with DPW and PSA each investing over US$1 billion in capex.

Drewry added that all but one of the 21 companies featured in the global operator league tables have published a commitment to achieve net zero. While most companies aim to reach the target by 2050, Adani and A.P. Moller-Maersk (parent company of APM Terminals) intend to achieve net zero by 2040, while Hapag-Lloyd has set a target of 2045. In contrast, China Cosco Shipping and China Merchants Port Holdings have set a target of 2060, which is aligned with the Chinese government’s goal.