New CMA CGM flagship Jacques Saade to call on Rotterdam

Wednesday, 11 November will see a new milestone for the energy transition in the port of Rotterdam, when the container vessel Jacques Saade makes its first call on the port, at the RWG terminal. Jacques Saade is the new flagship of the French ship-owner CMA CGM: the first container shipping company to fit a large share of its fleet with LNG-powered engines. LNG (liquefied natural gas) is considerably cleaner than heavy fuel oil, the transport fuel traditionally used in this sector.

Jacques Saade is also the first LNG-powered container vessel with a capacity of over 23,000 TEU containers. CMA CGM has ordered another eight of these ULCVs (Ultra Large Container Vessels) from the shipyard of Hudong-Zhonghua Shipbuilding, a full subsidiary of China State Shipbuilding Corporation. By 2022, the shipping company plans to have a fleet of no fewer than twenty LNG-powered vessels in service: nine 23,000 TEU ships, five 15,000 TEU ships and six 14,000 TEU ships.

LNG hub

Jacques Saade’s call on Rotterdam ranks as an important milestone for the Port Authority. “Like the Port Authority, CMA CGM supports the transition from heavy fuel oil to liquefied natural gas (LNG) as a transport fuel for shipping. At present, LNG is the cleanest fuel that can be considered scalable and affordable for this ship category. Moreover, the introduction of these new LNG-powered vessels supports the Port Authority’s ambition to serve as a key hub in the import, export, storage and bunkering of LNG. We feel honoured that every year, these nine new ships will be bunkering some 300,000 m³ of LNG in Rotterdam. This is also good news for LNG throughput and storage activities in our port,” says Allard Castelein, CEO of the Port of Rotterdam Authority.