Ocean shipping conversations often blur the line between alliances and consolidation. This episode breaks down how carrier alliances function in practice, why vessel sharing can improve routing and efficiency, and how ownership changes raise very different competition concerns. Using the ongoing discussion around ZIM as context, we connect market structure, port leadership transitions, and regulatory timing to real-world supply-chain resilience.

Expanded Summary

Ocean shipping conversations often lump alliances and consolidation together—but doing so misses how the market actually functions.

In this episode of By Land and By Sea, we take a closer look at ocean carrier alliances and make a clear distinction between cooperation and ownership. Using a plain-language aviation analogy, we explain how vessel sharing can increase routing options, enable more direct services, and improve equipment utilization—sometimes benefiting shippers through better network design and operational efficiency. Alliances, when properly structured, allow carriers to share assets while still competing for cargo.

We then use the ongoing discussion around ZIM as a case study—not as breaking news, but as a lens into how ownership changes differ from alliances and why acquisitions raise fundamentally different competition concerns. Consolidation permanently reduces the number of independent decision-makers in the market, which is why these conversations draw sustained attention from regulators, ports, labor, and governments.

From there, the episode widens the aperture to leadership and governance shaping the supply chain this week:
⚓ The official announcement of Dr. Noel Hacegaba as the next CEO of the Port of Long Beach
⚓ A reflection on last week’s personal conversation with outgoing CEO Mario Cordero, and why leadership stories matter
⚓ A brief update on Senate procedural movement affecting pending FMC and MARAD nominations, and why we’re “oh so close”

Taken together, this episode is about structure—how alliances, ownership, leadership, and regulatory timing interact to shape competition and resilience across global supply chains.

🎧 Episode: A Positive Case for Ocean Alliances
👉 Listen: www.TheMaritimeProfessor.com/podcast

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🎙️ Thanks for tuning in to By Land and By Sea powered by The Maritime Professor®! If you enjoyed today’s episode, be sure to subscribe ⭐ and leave a review 📝 - it really helps others find the show.

📚 Want to go deeper? Check out our live webinars, on-demand e-courses, and our Just-in-Time Learning™ sessions -- short, plain-language lessons (30 minutes or less) built for supply chain pros who need quick clarity.

🚢 Looking for something tailored? We also provide custom corporate trainings designed to meet your team’s needs.

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🚢 A special By Land and By Sea Podcast episode — and a bittersweet moment in maritime leadership

This week, I had the privilege of sitting down with MARIO CORDERO, who will be retiring this month after leading the Port of Long Beach through some of the most consequential years in supply chain history.

And just this week, the Port announced that Dr. Noel Hacegaba will step in as the next CEO — marking the end of one chapter and the beginning of another for one of America’s most important gateways.

This interview is unique because it wasn’t just a formal conversation — it was a personal one.

Mario and I worked together more than 10 years ago at the Federal Maritime Commission, and it is genuinely bittersweet to see him step away from this role. Not because he hasn’t earned a well-deserved breather — he has — but because this moment represents the closing of a major arc in his long, impactful career.

Mario has never been someone who “just sits around,” and I have no doubt he will continue contributing to the industry in new and meaningful ways. After a bit of travel, as he told me with a smile.

We talked about his earliest days, his years at the FMC, his role shaping the 2015 congestion report, global regulatory conversations, and what it was really like to lead Long Beach through the surge years.

It was thoughtful, candid, and truly special.

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⚓ JUST-IN-TIME LEARNING™ SPOTLIGHT

Curious about how FMC and MARAD divide responsibilities?

Or how their authorities connect to the issues Mario discusses in this episode?

Check out our Just-in-Time Learning™ micro-course:

👉 “FMC vs. MARAD: Who Does What in U.S. Maritime Policy?”

https://www.themaritimeprofessor.com/challenge-page/maritime-fmc-marad?programId=97f199ca-340b-4517-b03b-90d93a3aafcf

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Join 7,000+ supply chain leaders, innovators, investors, and global operators shaping the future of freight.

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Support the show

🎙️ Thanks for tuning in to By Land and By Sea powered by The Maritime Professor®! If you enjoyed today’s episode, be sure to subscribe ⭐ and leave a review 📝 - it really helps others find the show.

📚 Want to go deeper? Check out our live webinars, on-demand e-courses, and our Just-in-Time Learning™ sessions -- short, plain-language lessons (30 minutes or less) built for supply chain pros who need quick clarity.

🚢 Looking for something tailored? We also provide custom corporate trainings designed to meet your team’s needs.

⚓ Learn more and explore past episodes at: www.TheMaritimeProfessor.com/podcast

Big policy moves rarely arrive one at a time. We dig into a trio of shifts changing how shippers, carriers, and NVOCCs plan: the FMC’s latest civil penalty settlements, early signs of a safer Suez Canal, and a targeted court decision that trims—but doesn’t topple—the detention and demurrage billing rule. Each story stands on its own, but together they point to a strategic truth: regulatory literacy is becoming a real advantage.

We start with the $1.35M in FMC civil penalties and why that matters beyond headlines. These compromise agreements—without admissions—highlight where enforcement is focused: operating in line with published tariffs and making sure rates and charges are actually on the books. We also clarify a crucial detail that shapes incentives: penalty money goes to the U.S. general fund, not to the FMC. That keeps enforcement about standards, not collections, and it nudges everyone toward cleaner documentation, clearer contracts, and fewer “exceptions” that don’t survive scrutiny.

From there, we pivot to routing strategy. After years of detours around the Horn of Africa, some carriers are testing a return to the Suez Canal. The upside is real—shorter transit times, better schedule reliability, improved equipment balance—but risk remains dynamic. We walk through how to scenario-plan Suez vs. Cape, protect mariner safety, and reset inventory buffers without overpromising to customers.

We also break down the pause on Section 301 China port fees. Even with limited pass-through to shippers, the policy signaled that vessel build origin and control can carry costs on U.S. trades. That’s already influencing fleet allocation and future order books. Treat the pause as a lever that can move again. Build contracts that define surcharge handling, give yourself alternatives, and keep a live read on carrier exposure.

Finally, we unpack the DC Circuit’s narrow ruling on the FMC billing rule. The court vacated the “who may be billed” section for lack of clarity, but left the rest intact: the 20 data fields, timing rules, and documentation guardrails still apply. The result is better invoices, simpler disputes, and fewer black-box charges—if you use the framework. We outline what to validate before paying, how to challenge errors, and where the FMC may go next.

If this helped you see the road ahead more clearly, follow the show, share it with your team, and leave a review. Got a question or a topic you want us to tackle next? Send it our way and let’s dig in together.

🎧 Listen to this week’s episode:
👉 www.TheMaritimeProfessor.com/podcast

💡 Have a question or a topic you want us to tackle next? Send it our way.

#maritime #shipping #FMC #Suez #OSRA #detention #demurrage #tradepolicy #supplychain #ByLandAndBySea #TheMaritimeProfessor

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Support the show

🎙️ Thanks for tuning in to By Land and By Sea powered by The Maritime Professor®! If you enjoyed today’s episode, be sure to subscribe ⭐ and leave a review 📝 - it really helps others find the show.

📚 Want to go deeper? Check out our live webinars, on-demand e-courses, and our Just-in-Time Learning™ sessions -- short, plain-language lessons (30 minutes or less) built for supply chain pros who need quick clarity.

🚢 Looking for something tailored? We also provide custom corporate trainings designed to meet your team’s needs.

⚓ Learn more and explore past episodes at: www.TheMaritimeProfessor.com/podcast