Matson orders three LNG-fuelled containerships
The first vessel is expected to be delivered in the fourth quarter of 2026 with subsequent deliveries in 2027.
The 854-foot Aloha Class vessels are the largest containerships ever built in the US and are designed to operate at speeds in excess of 23 knots in support of Matson’s service hallmark – timely delivery of goods.
The new vessels will join two Aloha Class ships previously built for Matson by Philly Shipyard that entered service in 2018 and 2019, respectively. Like their sister ships, the new vessels will be equipped with dual fuel engines that are designed to operate on either conventional marine fuels or LNG, as well as a fuel-efficient hull design and environmentally safe double hull fuel tanks and freshwater ballast systems. While the earlier ships require some modification to operate with LNG, the new ships will be delivered LNG-ready.
“Our existing Aloha Class ships are among the fastest, most efficient vessels in the Matson fleet,” said Matt Cox, chairman and chief executive officer. “These new Jones Act compliant vessels will be built specifically for our China-Long Beach Express service (CLX), and like their sister ships, are expected to help Matson achieve its 2030 greenhouse gas emissions reduction goal while also providing additional capacity and speed benefitting our Hawaii service as well as the CLX.”
Matson aims to achieve a 40% reduction in Scope 1 fleet emissions by 2030 and net-zero Scope 1 by 2050.
The three new Aloha Class ships will replace three vessels currently deployed in Matson’s trans-Pacific CLX service, which will in turn replace three older vessels currently deployed in its Alaska service, redeploying bigger and faster vessels into that trade lane.
