The Suez Canal Authority has trumpeted the eastbound passage of the CMA CGM Benjamin Franklin (17,859 TEU) sailing from North Europe to the Far East, and which then passed unhindered through the Bab el-Mandeb Strait at the southern end of the Red Sea. It was the largest containership to sail through the canal in two years. Furthermore, a few days later, the CMA CGM Zhong He (also 17,859 TEU) began its eastbound transit too.
CMA CGM has been prominent in maintaining both a nominal Suez presence and trialing a wider if not larger return to the canal. Its BEX2, a wholly CMA CGM tonnage Ocean Alliance loop between the Mediterranean and Far East, has been using the canal throughout the year. It deploys vessels up to 15,500 TEU. In June this year, the CMA CGM Osiris (15,536 TEU) became the largest containership to transit the Canal for over a year.
Continuing the theme, the CMA CGM Jules Verne (16,020 TEU) looks set to complete its current roundtrip, westbound then eastbound, via the artery too. It is deployed to the MEX, which is another CMA CGM operated Mediterranean-Far East Ocean Alliance service.
Source: DynaLiners 46/25 – 14 November 2025
