Yachting Art Magazine

The CMA CGM Group has announced that ten new 24,000 TEU container ships powered by liquefied natural gas will be registered under the French flag. These vessels, among the largest in the world, will gradually enter service from 2026 onwards. The operation is part of a strategy that is economic, energy-related and sovereign, marking the group's increased commitment to the French maritime sector.

At the Assises de l'Économie de la Mer conference, Rodolphe Saadé, Chairman and Chief Executive Officer of the CMA CGM Group, officially registered ten new giant 24,212 TEU container ships powered by liquefied natural gas (LNG) under the French flag. This initiative, unprecedented in its scale, reaffirms the group's commitment to anchoring its development in France in the long term and to helping strengthen European maritime and logistical sovereignty.

The choice of the French flag is not merely symbolic. It is accompanied by the recruitment of 135 French sailors, trained in particular at the École Nationale Supérieure Maritime (National Maritime Academy). These seafarers will operate the new vessels, which will connect Le Havre and Dunkirk to Asia via the French Asia Line, the group's most iconic commercial line.

These new vessels, which will be delivered from 2026 onwards, also represent a decisive step in the energy transition of maritime transport. Their LNG propulsion, compatible with alternative fuels such as biomethane and e-methane, enables a reduction in CO₂ emissions of up to 85%, while limiting emissions of sulphur, fine particles and nitrogen oxides. This approach aims to lower the carbon intensity of maritime freight, a major challenge in a sector undergoing regulatory change.

The construction of these ships involves a European network of manufacturers and technology partners, including GTT for the LNG tanks and Bureau Veritas for certification. Each unit will be named after a French monument — Notre-Dame, Panthéon, Orsay, Versailles, Pont-Neuf, Nation or Austerlitz — as a way of linking national identity to international trade.

For CMA CGM, this decision is part of a sustainable repositioning strategy. The company, France's leading shipping company, intends to assert its role within a maritime industry considered to be a pillar of economic sovereignty: a sector that brings together shipowners, ports, shipyards and equipment manufacturers in the country's logistics chain.

Registration under the French flag also implies strict compliance with national safety and maritime labour standards. In the event of a crisis, these vessels can be integrated into the national strategic fleet, thereby contributing to the country's logistical resilience.

By focusing on a modernised, cleaner fleet operated by French crews, CMA CGM seeks to combine global competitiveness with industrial responsibility, while redefining France's place in the global maritime geo-economy.