CMA CGM places USD3bn dual fuel container ships order
The order for the 15,000 TEU containerships will be shared between Jiangnan Shipyard and Dalian Shipbuilding Industry (DSIC), while Hudong-Zhonghua Shipbuilding (HZS) will construct the dual-fuel 23,000 TEU boxships. The USD3.06bn order is understood to represent the largest order for containerships in Chinese shipbuilding history.
The order was announced during a state visit to China by France’s president, Emmanuel Macron. CMA CGM chief executive officer Rodolphe Saade was among a contingent of senior French business leaders accompanying Macron on the state visit.
The order extends CMA CGM’s orders of methanol fuelled engines for its fleet of containerships. In June 2022, CMA CGM placed its first order for 6 x 15,000 TEU containerships equipped with dual-fuel engines capable of operating on methanol.
While CMA CGM’s decision to expand its methanol fuelled fleet has attracted the majority of media coverage, the order for a further 4 x 23,000 TEU containerships represents a vote of confidence by the ship owner in the CMA CGM Jacques Saade-class of 23,000-TEU ultra-large containerships. The first of the initial series of nine was delivered from Hudong-Zhonghua Shipbuilding in October 2020.
Although no details about the engine orders have been confirmed, The Motorship expects the latest dual-fuel 23,000 TEU to retain the 12-cylinder, 920mm bore dual-fuel engines used in the original series. The engines were delivered to the shipyard by WinGD’s engine licensee CSSC-MES Diesel Co., Ltd. (CMD), from its factory located in Shanghai Lingang.
