France's CMA CGM orders construction of 22 new ships, 12 to be LNG powered

French container shipping firm CMA CGM said April 30 it has ordered 22 new ships to be built, including 12 that will be power by LNG.

CMA CGM signed the newbuilding contract with China State Shipbuilding Corp. for 2023-24 delivery. Six of the LNG-powered ships will have a carrying capacity of 15,000 twenty-foot equivalent units while the other six will have 13,000 TEU capacity.

The remaining 10 ships CMA CGM ordered April 30 are 5,500 TEU vessels powered by very low sulfur fuel oil.

The Marseille-based company currently operates 12 LNG-powered ships, a fleet that will grow to 32 containerships of various sizes by 2022. CMA CGM has set a goal of carbon neutrality by 2050.

CEO Rodolphe Saade announced in February it would begin deploying LNG-powered ships on trans-Pacific trade lanes from Asia to the US West Coast from October onward as more US companies seek to reduce the carbon footprint of their supply chain. Most of the LNG-powered ships currently deployed by CMA CGM operate on Asia-to-Europe routes.