The United States Federal Maritime Commission (FMC) sent an RFAI (Request for Additional Information) to Gemini Cooperation members Hapag-Lloyd and Maersk late last week.

According to the FMC, more information is required to determine the arrangement's potential competitive impacts before approval.

The carriers filed their agreement with the FMC at the end of May 2024. Usually, agreements become effective 45 days after filing unless the FMC requests further clarification. The Gemini Cooperation Agreement would have gone into effect Monday, 15 July, had the request not been made.

While the RFAI doesn't imply wrongdoing, the FMC indicated that the filing lacks sufficient detail to consider the partnership's competition and legal impacts fully.

Due to their sensitive nature, the data requested by the FMC from shipping companies are not expected to be published.  

According to Lloyd's List, spokesmen from both companies said: "This is fairly standard from the FMC. We do not anticipate any impact to the Gemini network and look forward to continuing to work with the FMC."

The Gemini Cooperation

The Gemini Cooperation partners Hapag-Lloyd and Maersk are currently part of two different alliances, THE Alliance and 2M Alliance, respectively.

In 2023, 2M Alliance partners Maersk and MSC announced that their alliance agreement would dissolve after January 2025. 

Following this, Hapag-Lloyd announced its withdrawal from THE Alliance, an agreement between Hapag-Lloyd, Ocean Network Express, HMM, and Yang Ming, before its 2030 expiration and announced its cooperation with Maersk.

The new Gemini Cooperation will combine the capacity of the second and fifth largest container shipping companies, offering 3.4 million TEU using around 290 vessels. The shared vessels will cover the principal routes between the United States, Asia, the Middle East, and Europe.