The agreement covers vessels with a capacity of 15,000 twenty-foot equivalent units each
Image: Total will supply LNG to CMA CGM’s future containerships in Marseille. Photo: courtesy of michaelmep/Pixabay.
Total has entered into a deal to supply around 270,000 tonnes of liquefied natural gas (LNG) to CMA CGM’s future container ships in France for more than 10 years.
The agreement covers vessels with a capacity of 15,000 twenty-foot equivalent units each that will operate between Asia and the Mediterranean.
The LNG delivery will commence in 2021.
Under the deal, Total will offer an appropriate solution for the bunkering of the containerships with the positioning of a LNG Bunker Vessel at the port of Marseille-Fos hub and a complementary bunkering solution in Singapore.
CMA CGM Group Chairman and CEO Rodolphe Saadé said: “Liquefied Natural Gas is the only energy currently available and reliable to significantly reduce our carbon footprint.
“The choice of LNG to power our ships requires the complete adaptation of the entire energy supply chain and infrastructure.
“By choosing Marseille-Fos as a refuelling port for our 15,000-TEU vessels, from the end of 2021, we are bringing the French container ports into this major energy transition.”
France-based Total stated that the new supply chains will further expand the use of LNG as a marine fuel, mainly in the Mediterranean Sea.
Total CEO Patrick Pouyanné said: “The development of Liquefied Natural Gas as a marine fuel is at the heart of our LNG strategy.
“This new contract with CMA CGM results in the launch of a dedicated supply chain in the port of Marseille-Fos.
“Total is committed to working with its customers to offer them more environmentally friendly marine fuels and thus contributes positively to the sustainable evolution of maritime transport, particularly in the Mediterranean basin.”
Total, Mitsui O.S.K. Lines charter LNG bunker vessel
Total has also signed a long-term charter contract with Japan-based Mitsui O.S.K. Lines for a second large LNG bunker vessel, to be delivered in 2021 that would be positioned in the Marseille-Fos area in France.
The bunker vessel will be built by Hudong-Zhonghua Shipbuilding in China. This vessel, which will be equipped with Mark III membrane containment system offered by France-based GTT, will have a capacity of 18,600 m³ for a length of nearly 135m.