CMA CGM to launch world’s largest LNG-powered containerships

September 26, 2019: The CMA CGM Group will be launching the world's largest containership of 23,000 TEUs, powered by liquefied natural gas (LNG). The nine new vessels, announced by Rodolphe Saade, chairman and chief executive officer of the CMA CGM Group in 2017, will join the group's fleet in 2020 on the French Asia Line (Asia-Northern Europe) and will be registered in the French International Register (RIF), confirming the group's commitment to operating under the French flag.

This a major milestone in the construction of the world's first LNG-powered ultra-large containership reached at the Shanghai Jiangnan-Changxing Shipyard, at an event attended by Saade, French and Chinese officials, business leaders and CMA CGM’s customers.

The first vessel in this new class of 23,000-TEUs, the CMA CGM JACQUES SAADE will also be equipped with a smart system to manage ventilation for the reefer containers carried in the hold. By naming the containership CMA CGM JACQUES SAADE, the group has symbolically given the name of its founder to its future flagship.

In addition, the nine newbuilds will feature a state-of-the-art bridge design, the world’s first to deliver major technological and advanced innovations to assist the captain and crew. A tactical display offering enhanced map views for more dynamic navigation briefings; a path prediction system optimised to display the ship’s predicted position in the next three minutes; a smart eye system projecting a bird’s-eye view of the ship’s surrounding area, and augmented reality screens offering the crew precise information on the ship's rate of rotation, distance from the wharf and transverse speeds.

The LNG containership will help to reduce emissions of sulphur oxide and fine particles by 99 percent and nitrogen oxide emissions by up to 85 percent.

To further improve the environmental performance of her sisterships, their hull forms have been hydrodynamically optimised. The bulb has been seamlessly integrated into the hull profile and the bow is straight. The propeller and rudder blade have also been improved, along with the Becker Twisted Fin.

The exceptionally large vessels (400 metres long and 61 metres wide) will be distinguished from the rest of the fleet by a special livery proudly displaying an ‘LNG POWERED’ logo, attesting to the major worldwide innovation that LNG propulsion represents on ships of this size.