China’s Yangzijiang Shipbuilding has handed over the LNG dual-fuel containership, MSC Alessia, to Switzerland-based MSC.
Jiangsu Yangzi Xinfu Shipbuilding, a unit of Yangzijiang, delivered the vessel on June 26, and the vessel departed the yard on June 28.
Yangzijiang said this is MSC’s seventh LNG dual-fuel containership in a series of vessels with a capacity of 16,000 teu.
Also, this ship is the fourth large containership built by Yangzijiang equipped with a wind deflector, which can reduce the wind resistance of the ship during sailing.
The fourth vessel, MSC Annamaria, the fifth vessel, MSC Germany, and the sixth vessel, MSC San Francisco, also feature a wind deflector, while the other three ships in this series do not have this technology.
In October 2022, Yangzijiang secured an order to build twelve LNG-powered containerships with a capacity of 16,000 teu for MSC.
Yangzijiang said in February that it had secured orders for 38 LNG dual-fuel and 23 methanol dual-fuel containerships in 2024.
According to Yangzijiang, 28 of these LNG dual-fuel containerships will have a capacity of 17,000 teu, while 10 vessels will have a capacity of 9,000 teu.
The shipbuilder did not secure orders for LNG dual-fuel containerships in the first quarter of this year.
In total, Yangzijiang has 56 LNG dual-fuel containerships in its order book.