CMA CGM announces fleet expansion
22 new vessels ordered to accommodate market growth (Source: CMA CGM)
French shipping group CMA CGM has ordered 22 container ships from Chinese CSSC Group. The order will include 12 ships powered by liquefied natural gas (LNG) and 10 to run on very low sulphur fuel oil (VLSFO), CMA CGM said in a statement. The value of the order was not disclosed but market estimates were around US$2.3 billion, making it one of the largest container ship orders ever won by Chinese yards.
The French company said it has ordered six LNG-powered containerships with a capacity of 13,000 TEU, six LNG-powered ships of 15,000 TEU and ten VLSFO-powered ships of 5,500 TEU. Broker reports said the LNG ships would be dual-fuelled vessels.
“This order aims at accommodating market growth,” CMA CGM said. “These vessels are expected to join the group’s fleet between 2023 and 2024.”
Market sources said the vessels will be built by the yards Jiangnan Shipyard, Hudong-Zhonghua Shipbuilding, and Qingdao Beihai Shipbuilding Heavy Industry: Six LNG 15,000-TEU container ships to be built by Jiangnan Shipyard, with a total length of 366m and a width of 51m; six LNG 13,000-TEU ships, 336m long and 51m wide, to be built by Hudong-Zhonghua. The ten VLSFO-powered 5,500-TEU ships, with a length of 255m and a width of 40m, are reported to be built by Qingdao Beihai.
The three ship types were designed by CSSC. They will use GTT Mark III liquid cargo containment system. The 5,500-TEU container ship design has space reserved for installation of an exhaust gas scrubber.
