Sources told LNG Prime on Tuesday that French shipping giant CMA CGM and Evangelos Marinakis-backed Capital formed the joint venture to provide the LNG bunkering vessel for TotalEnergies.
If confirmed, this would be the first LNG bunkering vessel owned either by CMA CGM or Capital.
The vessel is expected to have a capacity of between 18,000 cbm and 20,000 cbm, but there could be an option for a larger size vessel of 25,000 cbm, the sources said.
Both Chinese and South Korean yards are competing to construct the vessel, they said.
No further information has been revealed.
LNG bunkering JV
Earlier this year, TotalEnergies and CMA CGM signed a deal to develop a 50/50 logistics joint venture dedicated to implementing and operating an LNG bunkering supply solution at the Dutch port of Rotterdam.
The joint venture will capitalize on TotalEnergies’ established logistics infrastructure in the ARA region, where the 18,600-cbm LNG bunkering vessel Gas Agility has been in operation since 2020.
As part of this new logistics joint venture, a new LNG bunkering vessel will be positioned in Rotterdam by the end of 2028 and jointly operated.
In August, China’s Hudong-Zhonghua said it had secured another order to build one 18,600-cbm LNG bunkering vessel for TotalEnergies and Spain’s shipping firm Ibaizabal.
Hudong-Zhonghua stated that this is an optional vessel as part of the 1+1 order announced in July last year, and it is scheduled for delivery in 2028, with plans to serve in the Dutch port of Rotterdam.
The new LNG bunkering vessel will be 135.9 meters long, 24.5 meters wide, and with a depth of 16 meters.
Last month, Hudong-Zhonghua also received approvals from five classification societies for a 25,000-cbm LNG bunkering vessel design it jointly developed with French LNG containment specialist GTT.
TotalEnergies expanding LNG bunkering business
As mentioned above, TotalEnergies’ first LNG bunkering vessel, Gas Agility, has been in operation in Rotterdam since November 2020.
In January 2022, TotalEnergies launched its second chartered LNG bunker vessel, Gas Vitality, into operations in Marseille, France.
A third LNG bunker vessel, Brassavola, will also serve TotalEnergies commercial LNG bunkering operations at the port of Singapore, where the company operates under its LNG bunker supplier license, awarded by the Maritime and Port Authority of Singapore.
Last year, TotalEnergies also took a final investment decision on the Marsa LNG bunkering project in Oman.
The first Ibaizabal vessel ordered at Hudong-Zhonghua will serve this project.