The French liner shipping company CMA CGM announced a further expansion of its fleet in its balance sheet figures for 2024 – and is now taking action.
According to an announcement by the state-owned shipyard China State Shipbuilding Corp (CSSC), contracts have been signed for twelve container ships, each with a capacity of 18,000 TEU. Although the name of the customer is not mentioned in the announcement, all signs point to the French shipping company CMA CGM.
The units in question are said to cost a good 200 million dollars each and are to be equipped with dual-fuel main engines. The preferred fuel would be LNG, as with most newbuildings in the recent past. The delivery dates mentioned are 2028 and 2029.
The order from Jiangnan would be the second newbuilding contract placed this year by the Marseille-based company managed by Rodolphe Saadé. In January, the shipping company had already ordered twelve container ships of a similar size from Hyundai in South Korea, which are to be delivered by December 2028.
The fact that CMA CGM is placing orders in China is made even more explosive by the latest protectionist efforts of the US administration. According to a proposal by the US Trade Representative (USTR), high port charges are to be levied on ships built in China in future.
According to the proposal, costs of up to 1.5 million dollars (1,000 dollars per ton of capacity) could be due for each port call for ships built in China if the newbuildings are delivered by Chinese shipyards within the next 24 months or if more than half of the ships in the fleet come from China.
CMA CGM is the world’s No. 3 liner shipping company with a fleet capacity of almost 3.9 million TEU. According to Alphaliner, the newbuilding program comprises 82 ships with a further 1.3 million TEU. This corresponds to 34% of the existing fleet.
