CMA CGM Chairman and CEO Rodolphe Saadé just lately introduced that the France-headquartered firm would dedicate six liquefied pure gas-powered container ships to the U.S. market as a part of its drive to propel the power transition of the shipping business.
The primary of those six container ships, which every could have a capability to hold 15,000 twenty-foot equal items (TEUs) will likely be delivered in October. All six will likely be operational by the tip of 2022, CMA CGM stated. The vessels will likely be deployed on CMA CGM’s Pearl River Specific (PRX) commerce, which sails from China to the Port of Los Angeles.
The CMA CGM Group at the moment operates 12 LNG-powered container ships. It stated the LNG fleet will develop to 32 vessels of assorted sizes by the tip of subsequent yr.
“This know-how is among the first steps in the direction of reaching CMA CGM Group’s formidable 2050 goal of carbon neutrality,” the ocean service stated in final week’s announcement.
The brand new ships will allow CMA CGM to supply clients with “efficient options,” it stated. “American clients will be capable of select to move their items utilizing LNG, a brand new know-how that helps to protect air high quality by eliminating virtually all atmospheric pollution.”
CMA CGM stated in November 2017 Saadé “made the visionary resolution to order 9 23,000-TEU vessels with an LNG energy provide, a primary within the historical past of the shipping business for vessels of this measurement.” The primary, the CMA CGM Jacques Saadé, made its maiden voyage in September 2020. The Jacques Saadé doesn’t name america.
LNG, in response to CMA CGM, “delivers a discount of 99% in sulfur dioxide, 91% in particulate matter emissions and 92% in nitrogen oxide emissions, far surpassing the necessities of present rules. LNG additionally offers an preliminary response to the problem of tackling local weather change. An LNG-powered vessel emits as much as 20% much less CO2 than fuel-powered techniques.”
CMA CGM stated time is of the essence for addressing the influence of local weather change.
“The CMA CGM Group has at all times thought-about its enterprise efficiency as intrinsically linked to its social and environmental efficiency,” it stated, including that the shipping line “is actively implementing measures to speed up the business’s power transition and is considerably investing in analysis and growth to design the clear vessels of the long run.”
“CMA CGM additionally continues to closely spend money on various options reminiscent of wind-assisted propulsion, hydrogen engines and inexperienced fuels. In 2019, the group grew to become the world’s first shipping firm to efficiently check a biofuel comprising 20% recycled plant oil and forestry waste. It has pledged that various fuels will cowl at the very least 10% of its consumption by 2023,” it stated.
Maersk’s ‘carbon-neutral fleet by 2050’
CMA CGM just isn’t the one ocean service pledging to sail cleaner ships. Final month A.P. Møller – Maersk introduced it will function the world’s first carbon-neutral vessel by 2023, seven years forward of its authentic goal.
“A.P. Møller – Maersk’s ambition is to prepared the ground in decarbonizing international logistics. Our clients anticipate us to assist them decarbonize their international provide chains, and we’re embracing the problem, engaged on fixing the sensible, technical and security challenges inherent within the carbon impartial fuels we’d like sooner or later. Our ambition to have a carbon impartial fleet by 2050 was a moonshot after we introduced in 2018. In the present day we see it as a difficult, but achievable goal to succeed in,” CEO Soren Skou stated within the announcement.
Maesk stated that in 2023, its methanol-fueled feeder vessel will likely be on the water, “piloting a scalable carbon-neutral product to clients and providing gas suppliers incentive to scale manufacturing of the fuels of the long run.”
The feeder vessel could have a capability of about 2,000 TEUs and function regionally. Whereas the vessel will be capable of function on customary very low sulfur gas oil (VLSFO), it’s meant to function on carbon-neutral e-methanol or sustainable bio-methanol from its launch.
Henriette Hallberg Thygesen, the CEO of Maersk’s fleet and strategic manufacturers, stated, “Will probably be a big problem to supply an satisfactory provide of carbon-neutral methanol inside our timeline to pioneer this know-how. Our success depends on clients embracing this groundbreaking product and strengthened collaboration with gas producers, know-how companions and builders to ramp up manufacturing quick sufficient.
“We consider our aspiration to place the world’s first carbon-neutral liner vessel in operation by 2023 is the easiest way to kick-start the fast scaling of carbon-neutral fuels we are going to want,” she stated.
Maersk added that all future newbuilds could have twin gas know-how put in, enabling both carbon-neutral operations or use of VLSFO.
Don’t overlook about Hapag-Lloyd
Hapag-Lloyd CEO Rolf Habben Jansen stated throughout a recent press conference that Maersk had given him a heads-up earlier than saying the timeline for its methanol-fueled feeder vessel launch.
“I feel it’s nice that they take that initiative for one thing that’s carbon-neutral, though … for these ships which might be going long-haul, it’s nonetheless tougher,” Habben Jansen stated.
“We’re additionally doing numerous issues on that entrance,” he stated. “We’ve transformed considered one of our ships to LNG. We’ve ordered new ships which might be working on LNG. We’ve been testing biofuel and in addition exploring all kinds of how to convey down our footprint yearly.”
Habben Jansen stated Hapag-Lloyd will make an announcement by itself sustainability efforts through the second quarter of this yr.
LNG bunkering
Ships powered by various fuels nonetheless require fueling.
JAX LNG and TOTE Providers introduced final month that they’d accomplished their first ship-to-ship LNG bunkering of a foreign-flagged vessel in Jacksonville, Florida.
Crews equipped about 450,000 gallons of LNG from the Clear Jacksonville, touted as North America’s first LNG bunker barge, to the car service Siem Confucius at JAXPORT’s Blount Island Marine Terminal.
“Our fashionable and eco-friendly fleet helps scale back emissions whereas maximizing effectivity,” Siem Automotive Carriers President Jeffrey Campbell stated in a press release. “We’re thrilled to associate with different pioneers within the environmental conservation motion, together with Volkswagen, JAX LNG, TOTE Providers and JAXPORT, to scale back emissions whereas offering world-class service to the business.”
TOTE Providers operates the Clear Jacksonville and has efficiently carried out greater than 150 bunkering operations for its personal LNG-powered container ships.
“This industrial bunkering is a serious milestone for TOTE Providers and a big step towards supporting clean-fueled vessels working world wide,” stated TOTE Providers President Jeff Dixon within the announcement. “TOTE Providers’ vital expertise with LNG — mixed with our technical experience and dedication to security — permits us to help different clients adopting use of the cleanest, most available gas for shipping at this time and into the long run.”
Largest LNG-powered container ship making maiden voyage
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Hapag-Lloyd CEO: COVID, congestion, container shortage form ‘perfect storm’
Click here for more American Shipper/FreightWaves stories by Senior Editor Kim Link-Wills.
