KUALA LUMPUR: The world's largest liquefied natural gas-powered containership, CMA CGM Jacques Saadé, has berthed at Westports Holdings Bhd's Container Terminal 7 yesterday.
The ship will be calling Westports regularly under the Ocean Alliance eastbound service FAL1, which starts sailing from Le Havre, France and ends at Tianjin Xingang, China.
The port operator has accommodated the maiden call of CMA CGM Jacques Saadé, on its way to China.
With an overall length of 400 meters, the ship was carrying capacity of 23,000 twenty-foot Equivalent Units (TEUs) of containers.
CMA CGM Jacques Saadé is also the container vessel with the highest nominal capacity that has ever called at Westports.
CMA CGM Jacques Saadé demonstrated the CMA CGM Group's commitment towards energy transition in the shipping industry and its investment towards reducing its carbon footprint and improving air quality, particularly for surrounding population centres that the vessel visits, by limiting polluting emissions.
The Energy Efficiency Design Index, which measures the environmental footprint of a vessel, showed that CMA CGM Jacques Saadé yields a 20 per cent improvement compared to a conventional ship.
Westports group managing director Datuk Ruben Emir Gnanalingam said the company had made a long-term commitment a few years back to reduce its carbon emission intensity as it was focusing on the use of more energy-efficient equipment.
"We also recognise the impact of climate change and to reciprocate our client's commitment towards reducing its carbon footprint; we have 100 trees planted for CMA CGM through EcoMatcher.
"The trees planted will increase carbon sequestration capacity as we all do our part to mitigate the impact of climate change," he said in a statement yesterday.
French ambassador to Malaysia Roland Galharague and French embassy economic counsellor and economic department head Emmanuel Ly-Batallan, Port Klang Authority (PKA) chairman Datuk Chong Sin Woon, PKA general manager Capt. K. Subramaniam and CMA CGM Malaysia Sdn Bhd managing director Ravindra Sahu were among those present to witness the vessel's maiden call at Westports.
Westports presented a plaque to the vessel's captain and 100 trees to CMA CGM, which have been planted in collaboration with EcoMatcher.
Westports also presented a tree each to the delegates representing the French embassy in Malaysia, PKA and CMA CGM Malaysia.