TotalEnergies and its partner CMA CGM, have launched Marseilles’ inaugural ship-to-containership Liquefied Natural Gas bunkering operation in the Port of Marseille Fos, Southern France.
CMA CGM BALI, a 15,000 TEU1 LNG-powered containership is deployed on the MEX 1 service, connecting Asia and South Europe. She has been refuelled by TotalEnergies’ Gas Vitality, the first LNG bunker vessel based in France, with around 6,000m3 of LNG, by means of a ship-to-ship transfer alongside the Eurofos container terminal, while the containership carried out cargo operations simultaneously. The Gas Vitality is TotalEnergies’ second chartered LNG bunker vessel and owned by Mitsui O.S.K. Lines, Ltd (MOL).
This entire operation underlines a solid collaborative teamwork across the French maritime industry including the involvement of local port authorities to enable the vessels’ safe operatorship, and the commitments of all the parties to support the growing role of LNG in the shipping’s energy transition.
“TotalEnergies is delighted to successfully complete Marseille’s first LNG bunkering operation of a containership via the Gas Vitality. Her deployment underscores the Company’s commitment to support the French port’s ambition to be an LNG bunkering hub for the Mediterranean region,” said Jérôme Leprince-Ringuet, Vice-President Marine Fuels at TotalEnergies. “This landmark operation also demonstrates our continued support to the growing role of LNG in shipping’s energy transition. In line with TotalEnergies’ climate ambition, we will continue to work hand-in-hand with our industry partners to develop and scale up new, lower-carbon and ultimately, zero-carbon fuel solutions for shipping.”
TotalEnergies supports the growing role of LNG in shipping’s energy transition
TotalEnergies has actively invested in LNG infrastructure, critical to support its shipping customers’ uptake of LNG as a marine fuel.
Since November 2020, TotalEnergies has been operating the 18,600-m³ Gas Agility at the Port of Rotterdam and completed the first LNG bunkering operation of the CMA CGM JACQUES SAADE, the largest dual-fuel LNG-powered containership in the world. Together with the Company’s second-chartered LNG bunker vessel, the Gas Vitality, both vessels demonstrate its commitment to make LNG bunkering capabilities readily available in key European hubs. In 2022, TotalEnergies will also commence operations of a third LNG bunker vessel to serve Singapore, where the Company has been awarded a LNG bunker supplier license for a five-year term starting January 1st, 2022.
