CMA CGM deploys its biggest ship

   The liner carrier CMA CGM on Thursday unveiled its largest ever ship, the 16,000-TEU CMA CGM Marco Polo.
   The U.K.-flagged ship is 396 meters long, 54 meters wide, with a draft of 16 meters, and is the first in a series of three 16,000-TEU vessels, all to be named after great explorers. The delivery of the two next vessels is expected in 2013.
   Nominally, the ships are larger than Maersk’s six-year-old Emma-class vessels, which have a reported capacity of 15,500 TEUs. The Danish line is set to take delivery of a series of 20 18,000-TEU vessels starting next year.
   The Marco Polo will be deployed on CMA CGM’s FAL 1 service between Asia and Europe. The service, according to American Shipper affiliate ComPair Data, is currently operated with 11 vessels, all from CMA CGM, with an average capacity of 13,054 TEUs. Three of the ships deployed on the service are 11,388 TEUs, while the remainder are 13,000 TEUs or larger.
   “It is with great pride that the CMA CGM Group launches this new vessel, which is the largest in the world,” said Nicolas Sartini, CMA CGM group senior vice president of Asia-Europe lines. “It shows the expertise of the group’s teams, who are able to handle not only the very technical piloting of the ship but also its commercial operations. Our entire network of 400 agencies all around the world is active to ensure the successful launching of this ship.” – Eric Johnson