Adani Ports and Special Economic Zone Ltd (APSEZ), the world’s fastest-growing integrated transport utility, and the Port of Marseille Fos, France’s leading port and the Mediterranean’s premier gateway, have signed a Memorandum of Understanding (MoU) to deepen cooperation on trade facilitation, port innovation, and energy transition.
This partnership proposes the creation of an IMEC Ports Club to strengthen coordination among key ports along the India–Middle East–Europe Economic Corridor (IMEC) route, reinforcing connectivity between India and the European Union. This completes the IMEC pathway for India-EU trade, boosted by the FTA between India and the EU, termed as ‘the mother of all deals’ by the Hon’ble Prime Minister of India Shri Narendra Modi.
The MoU was signed during the visit of French President Emmanuel Macron, underscoring the expanding India–France strategic partnership and aligning it with the broader IMEC and India–EU trade vision. Launched at the 2023 G20 Summit in New Delhi, the India–Middle East–Europe Economic Corridor (IMEC) is a 6,000-km multimodal connectivity initiative linking India and Europe through integrated maritime routes, rail networks, digital systems, and clean energy pathways.
On the eastern gateway of IMEC, APSEZ’s ports at Mundra and Hazira form a multimodal logistics hub connecting South Asia to West Asia. Through this MoU, Marseille Fos strengthens the western European gateway of the corridor, adding approximately 70 million tonnes of capacity and extending IMEC’s reach deeper into Europe.
Marseille Fos is one of Europe’s largest integrated multimodal port ecosystems. This partnership establishes a more structured and coordinated pathway to facilitate India–EU trade flows. The partnership will focus on:
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Promoting the IMEC route as a sustainable, secure, and competitive alternative for Eurasian trade flows, including joint campaigns, participation in international trade fairs and roadshows, and targeted B2B engagements.
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Technical exchange and capacity building in port digitalisation, smart port platforms, data interoperability, cybersecurity, alternative fuels, shore power supply, and low carbon bunkering.
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Developing the Mundra–Marseille Fos Green Maritime Corridor.
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Co-founding an IMEC Ports Club to institutionalise dialogue among corridor ports and coordinate inputs for policy discussions and investment frameworks supporting IMEC infrastructure.
“India has already taken a leadership role in advancing this corridor, and with the conclusion of the India–EU Free Trade Agreement, trade between the participating countries is expected to grow manifold,” said Mr. Ashwani Gupta, Whole-time Director & CEO, APSEZ. “At APSEZ, our ports in Hazira and Mundra on India’s western coast have already established a seamless pathway across the first and middle legs of the corridor. With this MoU with the Port of Marseille Fos in France, we have now successfully connected the final leg to Europe. This partnership will significantly accelerate the exchange of information and materials among all participating nations, further strengthening economic cooperation and supply-chain resilience.”
Mr. Hervé Martel, CEO of the Port of Marseille Fos, added: “We are pleased to strengthen our partnership with APSEZ at a moment when the IMEC corridor is entering a decisive phase. India and Marseille stand at the two extremities of this future trade backbone, giving both ports a major responsibility in structuring and energizing this new route. Together, we intend to mobilize and federate the ports involved, and to act as strong advocates of a more efficient, resilient, and sustainable connection between our regions.”
About APSEZ
APSEZ, part of the globally diversified Adani Group, is a leading Integrated Transport Utility across cargo origination (International Freight Network), port handling, rail transport, multi-modal logistics parks, warehousing, and final delivery via road transport to customer gates. This comprehensive “shore-to-door” capability, supported by cutting-edge digital infrastructure and AI-driven optimization, positions APSEZ as India’s preeminent integrated logistics solutions provider.
The company operates a comprehensive ecosystem of 15 strategically located ports and terminals across India’s west, south, and east coasts, combined with a diversified marine fleet of 127 vessels, integrated logistics capabilities including 12 multi-modal logistics parks, 3.1 million sq. ft. of warehouses, and 25,000+ trucks operating on its proprietary platform, providing capabilities to handle vast amounts of cargo from both coastal areas and the hinterland.
With a current cargo handling capacity of 633 million tonnes per annum, APSEZ commands approximately 28% of India’s total port volumes, targeting 1 billion tonnes throughput by 2030. Recognized among the Top 5% of global transportation and infrastructure firms in the 2025 S&P Global Corporate Sustainability Assessment (95th percentile globally), with five ports featuring in the World Bank’s Container Port Performance Index 2024, APSEZ combines scale, operational excellence, and integrated capabilities to enable seamless global trade.
About the Port of Marseille Fos
A major player in international trade, the Port of Marseille Fos, France’s leading maritime gateway and a strategic hub on the Mediterranean, handles 74 million tonnes of cargo annually and welcomes nearly 10,000 vessel calls each year. Its 10,400-hectare industrial and logistics zone – one of Europe’s largest – hosts major global players and supports a complete range of activities including liquid and dry bulk, containers, Ro Ro, energy, industry, and ship repair, notably Dry Dock 10, the third largest dry dock in the world.
As a multimodal hub connected by rail, river, road, and pipelines, Marseille Fos offers direct access to the French and European hinterland, with robust services linking the Mediterranean to Northern Europe. It serves more than 15 million consumers in Southern France and reaches over 70 million inhabitants across the Rhône–Saône corridor and Western Europe.
The port also benefits from the MeRs axis (Marseille–Rhône–Saône), the natural extension of its industrial ecosystem, which gathers hundreds of companies and Europe’s leading inland logistics clusters. Marseille Fos is actively involved in several inland port authorities and multimodal platforms, supporting coordinated logistics and greener supply chains along the corridor.
Environmental excellence is at the heart of its strategy, with over 1 billion euros invested in the 2025–2029 plan to accelerate decarbonisation, expand shore power capabilities, and support the emergence of green industrial ecosystems, including renewable hydrogen, circular economy, and low-carbon manufacturing clusters.
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