French liner giant CMA CGM's flagship LNG-fuelled containership has started taking on LNG bunkers in the Port of Rotterdam in what will be the largest LNG bunkering operation carried out to date.
Total's 18,600-cbm Gas Agility is shown alongside the 23,000-teu newbuilding CMA CGM Jacques Saade on Thursday.
CMA CGM said its boxship, which has an 18,600-cbm membrane-type bunker tank, will be refueled with LNG while port handling operations remain underway.
The company did not say what volume of LNG bunkers would be loaded or how long the operation is expected to take.
Once bunkering is complete, the vessel will continue on its maiden voyage, which began on 22 September after it joined the fleet, CMA CGM said.
The giant boxship is being supplied with bunkers by Total Marine Fuels Global Solutions (TMFGS), the bunkering arm of French energy major Total, which has a long-term contract to supply LNG to CMA CGM.
TMFGS' chartered LNGBV Gas Agility has already carried out its first LNG bunkering in Rotterdam, fuelling the 14,800-cbm containership newbuilding CMA CGM Tenere.
The Port of Rotterdam will play a key role in refueling the Group’s LNG-powered fleet, which operates regular services between Asia and Europe, CMA CGM said.
The company described the port as becoming "a world-class hub for LNG, which will take the shipping industry’s energy transition to the next level."
The Port of Marseille Fos is also set to become a gas bunkering hub for the company with the delivery of CMA CGM's 15,000-teu LNG fleet and a sistership LNGBV for Total.
CMA CGM chairman and chief executive Rodolphe Saade said: “The energy transition is well and truly underway at CMA CGM.
"As well as being reliable, LNG is the best available technology for significantly improving air quality and contributing towards tackling global warming.”
CMA CGM will boast a fleet of 26 LNG-powered containerships by 2022, seven of which have already been delivered.
The company said the vessels are the product of seven years of research and development efforts.
