Maersk, CCT execs call for integration to seize LatAm

Latin America's maritime sector faces volatility from geopolitical uncertainty, which is reconfiguring supply chains. According to executives speaking at the 11th Latin American Port Forum in Panama, this disruption presents a unique regional opportunity.

Maersk's Managing Director for Central America, Andean & Caribbean Sea Area, Efrain Osorio, stated that supply chains now compete on overall service. "They buy reliability, visibility, speed and resilience across their entire logistics chain," Osorio told the forum. He argued that integration drives competitiveness by creating a single ecosystem from shipping to warehousing.

The integration imperative

Osorio and William Elliott, president of Evergreen's Colon Container Terminal (CCT), agreed that capitalizing on the current moment requires much deeper integration. This must involve authorities, ports, shipping companies, logistics operators, and land infrastructure. "The key is to offer more diversified services with added value," they concurred. Resilience, they stated, is what customers seek.

Elliott highlighted CCT's own diversification into logistics, with a park built next to the terminal. He reported seeing more customers coming to Panama to transform products, noting "there is demand, quite a large demand." Osorio pointed to nearshoring, friendshoring, and manufacturing diversification as key regional opportunities.

Resilience through adaptation

William Elliott emphasized that adaptation is non-negotiable. "Shipping is resilience and those who do not adapt will miss the opportunity," he commented. He called for processes to be simplify with new technologies, arguing that adaptation must be immediate and kept diversified. Elliott also noted that interaction among ports is now more efficient, and they are not merely competitors.

Enrique Piqueras, general manager of PSA-Panama, stressed efficiency for transhipment hubs. "As we are a transhipment hub, we need to be more efficient since our competition is outside," he said. Piqueras cited progress but called for better coordination between government and the private sector.

Governance and investment challenges

A central challenge is governance amid political cycles. "The sector cannot change strategy every five years [when a new government is elected]," Piqueras stated, asserting that governance is necessary. This issue arises as Panama considers future investments, including a potential $8.5 billion plan for the maritime sector over the next decade.

The question remains whether such investment will reshape Panama's competitiveness and regional transhipment activities. A further challenge is how ports can compete with each other and with other terminals in the region. The executives' consensus points to integrated, diversified services as the path forward, moving beyond isolated port operations.