Transportation: ED ALDRIDGE

As the nation continues to feel the crunch of supply chain shortages, French container ship company CMA CGM Group, the world’s third largest, announced an incentive to encourage the early return of shipping containers to eligible ports.

Under the program, which ran for 60 days from May through July, the company offered a $300 credit per dry container returned within four days of pickup. CMA CGM projected that would result in 43,000 containers put back into circulation within four days.

Aldridge took over as president of CMA CGM America in 2020 and is responsible for its U.S. operations, including 22,000 employees across 22 ports, 880 of whom are Virginia-based. He called the incentive, announced in May, a “win-win for everyone.” It came less than two months after U.S. Sen. Elizabeth Warren sent Aldridge a letter citing concerns over whether the company was exploiting antitrust regulations and seeking details about shipping rates, bookings, revenue and other information.

Aldridge, who has a bachelor’s degree from New York’s Marist College, has also served as president of CMA CGM’s California-based APL North America, the country’s oldest ocean carrier, since 2017. He began his career with SeaLand Service.