CMA CGM, Hapag-Lloyd, MSC, Kuehne+Nagel support Team Malizia in Vendee Globe

November 26, 2020: CMA CGM, Hapag-Lloyd, MSC and Kuehne+Nagel announced support to the yacht racing Team Malizia under the motto: "A Race We Must Win" with a commitment to marine protection and sustainable shipping.

“With a strong environmental message, the partners are working for a sustainable future and contributing to ocean health by reducing worldwide CO2 emissions while focusing on the main pillars: CO2 reduction and transparency, science and education,” says the release.

Team Malizia was founded in 2016 with the aim to perform at the highest level in the Vendee Globe 2020, a solo race around the world which started on November 8, 2020. Besides the sporting ambition, the team has a message around climate change and ocean protection geared toward educating kids around the world about what is happening in our oceans. The team has partnerships with leading scientific bodies in order to advance research on ocean CO2 and skipper Boris Herrmann carries an onboard ocean laboratory to measure valuable ocean data during all races.

As Boris Herrmann creates transparency for science, the partners Kuehne+Nagel, CMA CGM, Hapag-Lloyd and MSC create transparency of ocean shipping CO2 emissions. The racing yacht is therefore named after the platform Seaexplorer, the first tool that creates CO2 visibility in maritime logistics. Based on carrier data, the platform gives the partners and their customers insight into the CO2 emissions of various maritime transport services and thus the possibility to choose the most environmentally friendly transport alternatives.

Otto Schacht, member of the management board of Kuehne + Nagel International AG, responsible for sea freight, said, “It is a scientifically proven fact that ocean health is ultimately important for human well-being. As we are all renowned organisations in our respective fields of activity, we want to join forces to achieve an even stronger and broader impact on society. Environmental protection through CO2 transparency and reduction is one of our company’s major sustainability goals.”

Diego Aponte, president & CEO, MSC Group, said, "Understanding the impact of climate change on the environment and on the oceans where we operate is of crucial importance. At MSC, we passionately believe that the path to sustainable shipping involves commitment, innovation, dialogue, advocacy, and investment. That’s why we keep investing in our fleet and in the latest technologies to protect the oceans and the environment, and, why we support Team Malizia's quest to gather scientific data from ocean racing under the leadership of the inspirational Boris Herrmann. MSC is delighted to continue to promote collaboration across all areas of the shipping and logistics sectors in order to help realise the ultimate common goal of a zero-carbon future."

Rodolphe Saade, chairman and chief executive officer, CMA CGM, says: “The protection of the environment is a major challenge for the years ahead, and one that we must all address together. It is an integral part of our strategy as demonstrated by our choice to power our future ships using Liquefied Natural Gas. We decided to support Team Malizia because we share the same values and the same commitment to protecting our oceans as their skipper Boris Herrmann.”

Rolf Habben-Jansen, chief executive officer of Hapag-Lloyd AG. “We have taken significant steps over the last years to improve our own environmental footprint and have succeeded in reducing our CO2 emissions per TEU/kilometre by more than 50 percent since 2008. We believe that sustainability is a marathon rather than a 100-meter sprint. Given this fact, the issue will remain on our strategic agenda for the long term and be given high priority – also and especially in 2020, which has been an unusual year for all of us.”