CMA CGM orders 12 LNG-powered containerships at HD Hyundai Heavy

HD Hyundai Heavy’s parent KSOE announced on Thursday that HD Hyundai Heavy will build 12 vessels with a capacity of 18,000 teu.

The order is worth about 3.72 trillion won. This equals about $2.59 billion or some $216 million per vessel.

HD Hyundai Heavy will deliver the containerships by December 2028.

KSOE said that the vessels will be built for a European owner, but it did not provide further details.

LNG Prime was the first to report in December last year that CMA CGM has signed a letter of intent with HD Hyundai Heavy Industries, part of South Korean conglomerate HD Hyundai, to build 12 LNG dual-fuel containerships with a capacity of 15,500 teu.

CMA CGM decided after that to increase the size of the vessels to 18,000 teu, shipbuilding sources said.

In July last year, CMA CGM ordered 12 LNG dual-fuel container vessels with a capacity of 15,500 teu at HD Hyundai Heavy and HD Hyundai Samho.

HD KSOE said at the time each order is worth about 1.84 trillion won or 3.68 trillion won for the entire order. This equals about $2.66 billion or some $222 million per vessel.

The LNG tanks of these vessels will have a volume of 12,700 cbm, according to France’s GTT.

CMA CGM, which is one of the world’s largest backers of LNG as fuel, is also looking to order 12 more LNG dual-fuel vessels with a capacity of 18,000 teu, sources said.

These vessels are expected to be built in China. According to the sources, Jiangnan Shipyard or Yangzijiang Shipbuilding could build this new batch of vessels.