Seaspan’s 3rd 15,500 TEU LNG-powered containership sets sail on maiden voyage

ZIM Mount Blanc, the third of Seaspan’s 15,000 TEU LNG dual fuel vessels, set sail last week from the South Korean shipyard Samsung Heavy Industries (SHI), embarking on its maiden voyage.

The containership’s departure comes one month after SHI hosted a twin naming ceremony for Seaspan’s second and third LNG-dual fuel containerships, namely, ZIM Mount Everest and ZIM Mount Blanc.

 SHI has been entrusted with the construction of a series of ten ships for Seaspan Corporation.

Like their sister ship, the LNG-powered Sammy Offer, the two vessels join the fleet of the Israeli liner major ZIM under a long-term charter agreement worth $1.8 billion for all ten ships.

ZIM has inked a decade-long marine LNG sales and purchase agreement with Shell valued at over $1 billion, which will ensure a consistent supply of liquefied natural gas for these vessels.

The Neo-Panamax vessels measure an impressive 366 meters in length and boast a 51-meter beam respectively. They have a twin-islands design, and a unique vertical bow, combined with a tailor-made hull form design optimized for operational profiles.

Equipped with a dual-fuel main engine generating an impressive output of 46,000kW at 80 rpm, the vessels can achieve a maximum service speed of 22.5 knots. The LNG-powered vessels are expected to provide a 23% emission reduction, on average, according to ZIM.

ZIM added that the M-type, Electronically Controlled Gas Injection (MEGI) two-stroke engines have the lowest methane slip of around 0.2%.

The Israeli liner major has been a strong supporter of LNG as a transitional solution to lower-carbon marine fuels.

Eli Glickman, ZIM President & CEO, expects its chartered LNG-powered newbuild capacity to significantly improve the company’s cost structure throughout 2023 and beyond, strengthen its commercial prospects and advance its ESG objectives.

The ten 15,000 TEU dual-fuel LNG vessels are intended for ZIM’s core Asia to US East Coast service. ZIM also has 36 smaller, more versatile vessels, 18 of which are also dual-fuel LNG.