On Wednesday 8 July, the CMA CGM Notre Dame made its maiden call at the port of Rotterdam. The dual-fuel vessel, which was christened in Le Havre on 2 July, sails under the French flag and is one of the largest container ships in the world. It is also currently the largest LNG-powered container ship in the world with an LNG tank capacity of 18,600 m³. In addition to LNG, the CMA CGM Notre Dame is also fully capable of running on bio-LNG and, in the future, synthetic fuels such as e-methane.

With a capacity of 24,212 TEU, including 1,600 reefer containers, a length of almost 400 metres and a beam of 61 metres, the Notre Dame is the largest container ship sailing under the French flag.

First Bio-LNG Bunkering in Rotterdam

During its visit to Rotterdam, the ship was bunkered for the first time with bio-LNG produced in Europe, derived from organic waste from the agricultural and agri-food sectors. Bio-LNG, or liquid bio-methane, is a renewable fuel that reduces greenhouse gas emissions by at least 67% over its entire life cycle compared to fossil marine fuels. Its use helps accelerate the energy transition in the maritime sector while leveraging the already widely deployed LNG bunkering infrastructure.

CMA CGM Notre Dame bunkert bio-LNG in de Rotterdamse haven

Toon Pierré, General Manager Benelux cluster, CMA CGM: “We are proud to welcome the CMA CGM Notre Dame to Rotterdam. This port call reflects the strength of our long-standing partnership with the port of Rotterdam and our shared commitment to a more efficient, innovative and sustainable maritime sector, while continuing to support our clients with world-class connections.”

Rotterdam is one of the world’s top three bunkering ports and is one of the world’s leading bunkering hubs for biofuels. Every year, 10 million tonnes of fuel are bunkered. This does not only include traditional fuels; the range of alternative and sustainable fuels is also growing every year. The port of Rotterdam is committed to a future of multi-fuel bunkering, with the aim of making shipping more sustainable and achieving net-zero emissions by 2050.

Advanced technology

The Notre Dame also stands out for its advanced technology. The fully digitalised bridge utilises artificial intelligence, augmented reality and real-time navigation systems. These assist the crew in manoeuvring safely and help to optimise routes, speed and energy consumption. In addition, the ship features an aerodynamic windscreen and smart energy management systems for, amongst other things, container cooling.

The vessel is the first in a series of ten container ships named after iconic French monuments. The ships will be delivered between 2026 and 2028. The Notre Dame will be deployed on the French Asia Line (FAL), the liner service between Asia and Europe. During a rotation of approximately 102 days, the service calls at ports including Ningbo, Shanghai, Yantian, Singapore, Le Havre, Rotterdam, Hamburg and Tanger Med.