(WMN)-Rodolphe Saadé has been appointed as the new Chief Executive Officer of the French shipping company CMA CGM Group, taking over the reins from his father Mr. Jacques Saadé.
Jacques Saadé remains Chairman of the Board of Directors, the company informed.
“Rodolphe has proven himself over the years, and he has my deepest trust as Chief Executive Officer of the group. I know that, with Rodolphe as CEO, with Farid Salem and Tanya Saadé Zeenny, our executive officers, and all our teams around the world, the group will continue its development with the same commitment and passion,”Jacques Saadé said.
Since joining CMA CGM, Rodolphe Saadé has been engaged in the group’s restructuring process and acted as one of its executive officers. In 2015 and 2016, he led the voluntary general cash offer for Singapore’s Neptune Orient Lines (NOL), and in April of last year, he conducted the talks leading to the signature of the operational agreement with three Asian competitors, Cosco Container Lines, Evergreen Lines and Orient Overseas Container Lines.
The Ocean Alliance will offer 40 services on East-West routes and is scheduled to start operating in April 2017, once the regulatory approvals have been granted.
The French-based company posted a net loss of USD 202 million in the third quarter of 2016, compared with a USD 51 million net profit in the third quarter of 2015.
Volumes carried by CMA CGM amounted to TEU 4.5 million, an increase of nearly 36% thanks to the integration of NOL. Excluding NOL, volumes totalled 3.2 million TEUs in third-quarter 2016, down 2.7% year-on-year.
