Global container port operators control almost 50% of the market

A group of leading global container terminal operators achieved significant growth in transshipment in 2025. New entrants, AD Ports and Adani, and major operators CMA CGM, MSC Group, APM Terminals, and Hanseatic Global Terminals, are continuing last year’s aggressive growth trajectory, according to Drewry’s Global Container Terminal Operators Annual Review & Forecast 2026/27.

Global container port transshipment volumes in 2025 demonstrated remarkable resilience, rising 6.5% year-on-year to 994 million TEU, according to Eleanor Hadland, author of the report and senior analyst for ports and terminals at Drewry. “As a group, global terminal operators (GTOs) outperformed the global market. They increased their turnover by an average of 8.9% year-on-year, increasing their global market share from 48.8% in 2024 to 49.9% in 2025.”

PSA International Leads the Ranking

The PSA International terminal group maintained its lead in the rankings, with transshipment of 69.9 million TEU, representing a 5.3% increase, according to Drewry’s report. PSA International holds a 40% stake in the Baltic Hub in Gdańsk. The other co-owners of the Gdańsk terminal are the Polish Development Fund (30%) and the IFM Global Infrastructure Fund (30%).

The Gdańsk terminal also contributed to the strong performance of its main shareholder. The Baltic Hub in Gdańsk handled nearly 2.77 million TEU in 2025 (compared to 2.24 in 2024). In the first half of 2026, the Baltic Hub terminal handled nearly 1.6 million TEU, a 23% increase compared to the same period the previous year.

PSA International Terminal Map. Source: PSA

In its annual report, PSA International Pte Ltd (PSA) reports that it “handled 105 million TEUs in the fiscal year ended December 31, 2025, representing a 5% increase compared to the same period in 2024.” PSA’s Singapore terminals handled 44.5 million TEUs, while PSA’s terminals outside Singapore provided a combined throughput of 60.4 million TEUs. This represents an increase of 8.7% and 2%, respectively, compared to the previous year.

The terminals’ strong performance resulted in “PSA Group revenue and operating profit increasing by 7% and 19%, respectively.” However, net profit for the fiscal year increased by only 0.5% due to higher tax expenses and a non-cash impairment charge on intangible assets,” explains the PSA Management Board in its 2025 annual report.

PSA International’s TEU Transshipment and Turnover: S$1 Billion. Source: PSA

A Dynamic China Merchants Port Group

Looking back on the last five years of hard work, the company has achieved high-quality development results, characterized by “synergy between scale and efficiency, a balance between quality and speed, and simultaneous progress in domestic and international markets,” states Feng Boming, President of China Merchants Port Group Co., Ltd. in the introduction to the CM Ports 2025 Annual Report.

He emphasizes that “First, the scale of its core business has reached a new level. Total container throughput has increased [over five years – MG] from 122 million TEU to over 206 million TEU, at a compound annual growth rate (CAGR) of 11.1%. CM Ports also operates bulk terminals. Their cargo throughput increased [over five years – MG] from 454 million tons to 1,266 million tons, at a CAGR of 22.8%.

This result was achieved “thanks to significant increases in resource aggregation and hub capacity, as well as the continuous improvement in global competitiveness, CM Port has become one of the world’s leading public port operators. Secondly, the foreign structure has been expanded,” emphasizes Feng Boming, CEO of CM Port. As a result, annual profits have increased to over 10 billion yuan (RMB). “Fourthly, capital operations have yielded impressive results.”

Mergers, Acquisitions, New Concessions

Analyst Drewry states that “With relatively few privatization opportunities, we conclude that container terminal concessions are entering a new maturity cycle.” This situation has arisen as long-term leases awarded in the late 1990s and early 2000s are expiring. “As a result, many GTOs are proactively managing their portfolio maturation and working closely with concession authorities well in advance of concession renewals to align their goals.”

Mergers and acquisitions (M&A) continue to thrive, according to Drewry, but “geopolitical fragmentation has led to increased regulatory protectionism, delaying and even blocking large transactions.” The report authors cite the impasse surrounding the acquisition of Hutchison Ports’ international portfolio by TiL and BlackRock as an example.

However, terminal and port acquisitions remain a focus for many investors. For example, Macquarie is acquiring a 50% stake in Australian company Patrick Stevedores through the acquisition of Qube. Stonepeak is forming a new platform – United Ports LLC – with CMA CGM, which will acquire CMA’s terminal asset portfolio. CM Port successfully invested in NPH in Indonesia and entered into an agreement to purchase a stake in the Vast project in Brazil. HIPG in Sri Lanka launched container handling operations and reached a capacity of one million TEU.

The report’s author and senior analyst for ports and terminals at Drewry notes that “monetizing terminal assets is not a new strategy.” Eleanor Hadland believes that “CMA CGM’s agreement with Stonepeak further demonstrates that partnerships can generate benefits for investors and operators.”

Drewry’s Global Container Terminal Operators Annual Review & Forecast 2026/27 ranking of global terminal operators in 2025. Source: Drewry’s Global Container Terminal Operators Annual Review & Forecast 2026/27.

Aiming for Green Ports and Innovation

Capital investments of the 19 terminal operators surveyed increased by 23% in 2025. GTOs are focusing on expanding their terminal networks, modernizing infrastructure, and implementing automation and developing IT solutions. For example, the computerization of APM Terminals terminals involved the introduction of modern digital technologies in the form of the APM Terminals API service.

API (Application Programming Interface) is middleware that enables communication between two applications. APM Terminals’ innovative, industry-leading APIs enable customers to retrieve real-time container status data from terminal operating systems into their own internal systems, such as a logistics or transport management system (TMS), APM Terminals emphasizes.

Eleanor Hadland forecasts that GTOs will add a combined capacity of 186 million TEU to their portfolios between 2025 and 2030. However, these estimates must be cautious, as the calculation of additional capacity “may contain an element of double-counting due to the common ownership structure across the sector.”

Many operators’ growth strategies include significant investments in greenfield projects. Hadland estimates that these projects could account for 23% of the projected net growth of GTO’s portfolio. Four operators – MSC Group, CMA CGM, Adani, and HGT – plan to increase the capacity of their greenfield terminals by 4 million TEU each or more by 2030, Hadland estimated. The first two operators will add even more than 8 million TEU.

APM Terminals Financial Indicators. Source: APM Terminals

A spectacular example from outside Europe is the investment in the Suez Canal Container Terminal (SCCT), owned by APM Terminals. On July 1, 2020, the terminal’s management announced that it had “signed an electricity purchase agreement with the Egyptian New and Renewable Energy Authority (NREA) and the port operator, Suez Canal Economic Zone (SCZONE).”

Under this agreement, “the terminal will be able to operate on 100% renewable energy.” The agreement places SCCT among the pioneering ports in the country that fully utilize renewable energy, SCCT’s management emphasized in a press release.