Both vessels, which are to be built in cooperation by Shanghai-based Jiangnan Shipyard and Hudong-Zhonghua Shipbuilding, form part of a mega order from CMA CGM. In addition to carrying a record volume of TEU, the ships measure 400 metres in length, 61.3 metres in breadth and 33.5 metres in depth, making them as equally large as CMA CGM’s Antoine de Saint Exupery and Jean Mermoz. Another feature of the vessels is their ability to hold 2,200 four-foot refrigerated containers, which would account for 20% of each ship’s entire TEU volume. The French ocean carrier, the third largest globally by vessel container capacity, signed an agreement with China State Shipbuilding Corporation (CSSC) in September 2017. Nine 22,000 TEU vessels will be constructed overall, and once operational will be fuelled by liquefied natural gas (LNG). Commenting on the order in 2017, CMA CGM Group CEO Rodolphe Saadé said: “We have made the bold decision to equip our future 22,000 TEUs vessels with a technology firmly focused on the protection of the environment. “By choosing LNG, CMA CGM confirms its ambition to be a leading force in the industry in environmental protection by being a pioneer in innovative and eco-responsible technologies.”
Work has begun on two container ships capable of carrying 22,000 TEU for French ocean carrier CMA CGM. The first ship, the MV Asterix, is expected to be delivered in 2018 and will have a capacity of 20,000 TEU. The vessels are part of a fleet of nine ships to be built by Shanghai-based Jiangnan Shipyard and Hudong-Zhonghua Shipbuilding, following an agreement signed by China State Shipbuilding Corporation in 2017.