CMA CGM has held a naming ceremony at Jiangnan Shipyard in Shanghai for its methanol-fuelled containership CMA CGM ANTIGONE, the group said on social media.
The vessel is CMA CGM’s first methanol ship received in China and the 18th ship built for the carrier at Jiangnan. CMA CGM ANTIGONE is slated to operate on the Phoenician Express (BEX2) service, linking Asia, the Middle East and the Mediterranean.
CMA CGM ANTIGONE is the lead ship of Jiangnan’s new Kun series of large dual-fuel methanol container vessels. The ship is 366 m long and 51 m wide, with a deadweight of about 156,100 tonnes, and is classed by Bureau Veritas.
Jiangnan says it remains the only shipyard in China able to design and build large containerships for three different fuel types. For this project, the yard introduced a number of new build and commissioning steps, including strength testing of methanol tanks in a floating dock, installing a ring section of the tank onboard, pre-acceptance of the superstructure and accommodation block, elevator commissioning before delivery, full-container-load simulations, generator-set electric motor testing prior to undocking, and its first “safe” methanol bunkering operation for a newbuild. The ship’s dock period lasted about three and a half months.
The methanol fuel system is built under an approved alternative design and includes rupture discs and blanks fitted ahead of pressure-relief discharge valves.
The ship adds to CMA CGM’s growing methanol-capable fleet. This includes 13,000 TEU vessels such as CMA CGM IRON and sister ships of the same design, due for delivery from South Korean yards in 2025 under a 12-ship programme. CMA CGM has previously said it is investing nearly $20 billion in LNG- and methanol-fuelled ships and aims to have more than 150 vessels capable of operating on low-carbon fuels by 2029.
