CMA CGM christens two 2,000 TEU LNG-powered newbuilds

French shipping giant CMA CGM has held a christening ceremony for two of its 2,000 TEU LNG-fueled ships, CMA CGM Sintra and CMA CGM Altamira.

The vessels are the eighth and ninth in a series of ten 2,000 TEU LNG-powered ships being built by HD Hyundai Mipo in South Korea for CMA CGM’s Northern Europe feeder services.

According to the shipowner, CMA CGM Sintra departed from Busan on October 26, heading to Europe via the AURAF3 service while CMA CGM Altamira is expected in Rotterdam on December 10 via the FAL3 service.

The first containership in this series, CMA CGM Mermaid, was delivered to CMA CGM in February this year.

This fleet has been designed in cooperation with French shipbuilder Chantiers de l’Atlantique and Danish engineering firm Odense Marine Technique (OMT), which converted the concept into an industrial prototype. GTT also worked closely on the project for the design and conception of the gas chain and storage tank, which has a total capacity of 1,053 cubic meters.

The ships are 204.29 meters long and 29.6 meters wide which is said to improve their hydrodynamic and aerodynamic performance.  

The design also features an almost inverted straight bow with an integrated bow bulb aimed at better hydrodynamic performance to reduce fuel consumption by 15% per trip.

The vessels are powered by 12 MW MAN dual-fuel LNG engines and can also carry biogas (-67% eq. CO2) produced from bio-waste and are convertible to e-methane (-85% eq. CO2) produced from decarbonized hydrogen.

The newbuilds are also equipped with an alternator coupled to the main propulsion engine, which will provide the energy needed to power the onboard electrical installations once at sea.

Another innovation incorporated in the series is a 1 MW hydrogen-powered fuel cell, described as the most powerful fuel cell aboard a ship. It is on track to be mounted on the last of the series which is scheduled for delivery in January 2025.