The technology group Wärtsilä has been selected to supply a broad scope of solutions for 12 new liquefied natural gas (LNG)-fuelled container ships ordered by CMA CGM to be built in China.
The orders were placed in Q3 and Q4 of 2021, with six 13,000 TEU vessels currently being built at the Hudong-Zhonghua Shipbuilding, while the other six 15,000 TEU ships are also under construction at the Jiangnan Shipyard.
The Wärtsilä equipment is scheduled for delivery to the yards by the start of 2022, with the first of the 12 vessels expected to be launched during the third quarter of 2023.
By contracting these ships to operate with LNG fuel rather than conventional marine diesel fuels, the French shipping line is emphasising its efforts to decarbonise maritime operations, while LNG eliminates almost all air pollutants such as sulphur oxides and nitrogen oxide.
Furthermore, the dual-fuel gas engines on the vessels are already compatible with renewable energies such as biomethane, synthetic methane and e-methane, according to the Finnish technology company.
“The choice of dual-fuel gas vessels powered by LNG for our new ships is part of our commitment to build a zero-carbon future,” stated Xavier Leclercq, vice-president of CMA Ships, who went on to add that the company collaborates with Wärtsilä as they have a similar decarbonisation target and a very broad scope of solutions to offer.
The Wärtsilä solutions include for each vessel five Wärtsilä 34 dual-fuel (DF) auxiliary engines, 60 engines in total delivered from the joint venture in China, nacos platinum integrated control system, propulsion control system, Sewage Treatment Centre (STC)-13 series Sewage Treatment Plants and fuel gas supply system fitted with Wärtsilä’s operational performance improvement and monitoring (operim) system.
Wärtsilä was earlier contracted to supply a similar scope for nine 23,000 TEU CMA CGM vessels that have been delivered and five 15,000 TEU boxships, two of which have been delivered, and three are currently under construction.
“This large repeat order for a broad scope of Wärtsilä solutions from a valued customer marks the value of quality, reliability and sharp customer focus and highlights our wide range of competences across marine technologies,” commented Håkan Agnevall, president and CEO, Wärtsilä Corporation.
