19 February 2024 (Lloyd's List) - CMA CGM is still transiting the dangerous Bab el Mandeb passage despite the company saying it was no longer using Red Sea routing.

CMA CGM, which was the last major carrier to transit the Red Sea under the protection of French naval escorts, finally called an end to passages past Yemen when confirmed on February 5 that it would no longer use the route.

The decision was predicated by a near miss when its vessel Koi (IMO: 9462354) was targeted by Houthi missiles and led to several CMA CGM vessels, which had been scheduled to pass the Bab el Mandeb en route to Asia, reverse course and exit the Red Sea via the Suez Canal.

But CMA CGM’s owned and operated 16,000 teu CMA CGM Jules Verne (IMO: 9454450) left Jeddah on February 16, then switched off its Automatic Identification System signal. It re-emerged south of the Bab el Mandeb in the early hours of this morning, before anchoring off Djibouti.

AIS indicates the vessel is now on the move again. At 1030 hrs this morning its reported destination on AIS changed to Port Klang, Malaysia.

CMA CGM has not responded to requests for comment.