Verticalisation: The vertical integration carried out by major shipping lines aims to ensure berth availability and premium service levels and at the same time keep control of call costs. In this context, most of the major liners have entered the terminal operations business, following the development of transhipment strategies at certain locations. This trend is spread widely in the West Med, and especially in the Strait of Gibraltar, where none of the major container terminals are currently owned by independent operators, once Noatum Container Terminal in Valencia has been acquired by Cosco.