Maersk Container Industry to close Chile factory

Maersk Container Industry (MCI) will cease manufacturing at its factory in San Antonio, Chile, with immediate effect “to better suit market needs,” citing widespread overcapacity in the sector and difficulties in setting up a localised supply chain.

From now on, all its reefer containers will be manufactured at the existing facility in Qingdao, China, which had been running at full capacity when the Chilean facility was built.

The San Antonio factory delivered Star Cool Integrated containers to MCI’s customers since 2015 and was touted as a good option to directly cater to demand at the reefer export hub on the west coast of Latin America.