French energy major Total and compatriot shipping company CMA CGM have signed an agreement for the supply of approximately 270,000 tonnes of LNG per year over ten years.
Total said that this volume would cover the supply at Marseille-Fos of CMA CGM’s future 15,000-TEU container ships that will operate between Asia and the Mediterranean, scheduled for delivery starting in 2021.
As part of this agreement, Total will provide a suitable solution for the bunkering of these containerships with the positioning of an LNG bunker vessel at the port of Marseille-Fos and a complementary bunkering solution in Singapore.
These new supply chains will further expand the use of LNG as a marine fuel, particularly in the Mediterranean Sea.
Rodolphe Saadé , chairman and CEO of the CMA CGM Group, said: “ LNG 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 refueling port for our 15,000-TEU vessels, from the end of 2021, we are bringing the French container ports into this major energy transition. ”
Patrick Pouyanné , CEO of Total, added: “ 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. ”
To remind, CMA CGM and Total already signed a strategic procurement contract in December 2017 for the LNG-powered 23,000-TEU vessels ordered by the CMA CGM Group which are scheduled to enter service starting next year.
The first in this series, the CMA CGM Jacques Saade, the world’s first ultra-large capacity LNG-powered container ship, was launched on September 25, 2019 .