CMB.TECH wants to build the world’s first ammonia-powered container ship together with the shortsea shipping company NCL and the chemical group Yara.
The three companies have signed a 15-year cooperation agreement, announced CMB.TECH, the shipping group of the Saverys family. The future “Yara Eyde” will have a slot capacity of 1,400 TEU and will be ice class. Qingdao Yangfan Shipbuilding in China was commissioned with the construction. [ds_preview]
The “Yara Eyde” is scheduled for delivery by mid-2026. According to the information provided, the feeder would be the world’s first container ship to run on ammonia fuel. The ship is to be used on routes between Norway and Germany.
Shuttle service between Norway and Germany
The ship will be owned by Delphis, the container division of CMB.TECH. In future, it will be operated by NCL Oslofjord AS, a joint venture between North Sea Container Line and Yara Clean Ammonia. A long-term contract with Yara International for the transport of containers between the fertilizer plant in Porsgrunn, Norway, and the German seaports of Hamburg and Bremerhaven guarantees employment.
NCL Oslofjord has chosen to work with CMB.TECH because of the Belgian company’s extensive experience with hydrogen and ammonia engines, it adds. This innovative project could become an important milestone in the decarbonization of shipping and the reduction of greenhouse gas emissions in Europe and demonstrate that clean ammonia can enable cost-efficient and environmentally friendly maritime transport.
“We want to prove to the world that we can decarbonize today to navigate into tomorrow,” says Alexander Saverys, CEO of CMB.TECH.
