Germany blocks Cosco’s acquisition of an 80% stake in Zippel

The German government blocked Cosco, the Chinese state-owned shipping line, from acquiring an 80% stake in Zippel on October 7, 2026. The Ministry of Economic Affairs justified the decision by arguing that the deal would have deepened dependencies and endangered the resilience of supply chains in Germany and the European Union. These risks are the reasons given by the government, not proven facts about the specific consequences of the acquisition.

Hamburg-based Zippel specialises in transporting containers between seaports and inland destinations. The deal had received clearance from Germany’s competition authority in February. That approval did not prevent a separate review on security grounds: the antitrust authority said that such matters fell outside its remit.

A review separate from competition

Ministry of Economic Affairs spokesperson Tim-Niklas Wentzel said that Germany welcomes foreign investment, but that some deals may conflict with its security interests. He explained that applications are examined on a case-by-case basis.

The veto comes amid caution among several European governments over investment by Chinese state-owned companies in the transport and logistics sectors. The concern described by the authorities is that such deals could create dependencies or facilitate access to sensitive information about supply chains; the available information does not establish that such access occurred in this case.

Zippel will continue its day-to-day operations

Zippel chief executive Axel Plass expressed disagreement with the outcome and maintained that the business decision had been the right one. He also said that the company’s day-to-day operations would continue as normal. Cosco did not immediately respond to a request for comment, according to the published report.

As background, Cosco already holds a minority stake in a container terminal at the Port of Hamburg. That investment was authorised by Germany’s previous government in 2023, on the condition that the stake remain below 25%. The Zippel case shows that approval of a deal from a competition perspective does not necessarily settle assessments of economic security or supply-chain resilience.