CMA CGM Palais Royal, the world's largest LNG-powered container ship, makes historic stop in Beirut

The CMA CGM Palais Royal, the world's largest LNG-powered container ship with a capacity of 23,000 TEUs (Twenty-foot Equivalent Units), made an exceptional stop at the port of Beirut on Saturday, becoming the largest container ship ever to call at this port, as reported by the shipping company in a press release.

Now deployed on the MEX service, the vessel connects North Asia to the Mediterranean after a voyage of approximately 40 days. It will remain in the Lebanese capital until January 1, unloading containers of essential goods, furniture, electronic equipment, and solar panels.

Measuring more than four football fields in length (400 meters) and as tall as a 26-story building (78 meters), the CMA CGM Palais Royal is the largest LNG-powered container ship in the world.

"With the ambition to become Net Zero Carbon by 2050, the CMA CGM Group has invested over $15 billion to renew its fleet and is mobilizing $1.5 billion through PULSE, its Energy Fund, to invest in the development of alternative energies for transport and logistics... In 2023, CMA CGM reduced its carbon emissions by nearly one million tons compared to the previous year," the shipping company explained in its press release.

"The CMA CGM Group once again demonstrates its commitment to Lebanon and honors the commitments made to develop, modernize, and automate the country's two container terminals," said Joseph Dakkak, CMA CGM's General Manager in the Levant, on Saturday.

"This comes at a time when the major logistical corridors of global trade are emerging, connecting Asia to Europe through the Middle East. This is how the CMA CGM Group positions Lebanon at the center of global goods exchanges," he added.

The French container shipping company, Compagnie Maritime d'Affrètement - Compagnie Générale Maritime (CMA CGM), has its global headquarters in Marseille. 

Its President and CEO is Rodolphe Saadé, a 53-year-old Franco-Lebanese executive with extensive international experience.