The 24,000-TEU CMA CGM Vendome made its first transit of the Suez Canal on 9 June, sailing from France to Malaysia as part of the northern convoy, according to the Suez Canal Authority.
The 399.9-metre ship has a beam of 61.3 metres, a draft of 16 metres and gross tonnage of 244,000. It is fitted with an LNG fuel tank of 18,600 cbm, enabling longer Asia-Europe voyages. The vessel is deployed on the FAL 3 service, part of the Ocean Alliance network on the Far East-Northwest Europe trade.
The transit marked the first southbound passage through the Suez Canal for that service since January.
Suez Canal Authority chairman and managing director Adm Ossama Rabiee ordered additional transit arrangements, including senior SCA pilots and escort tugs. Senior pilots Capt Mahmoud Khairat Egeiz and Capt Mabrouk Rashad Mabrouk boarded the vessel under the authority’s first-transit protocol and presented a commemorative gift to the shipmaster.
Rabiee said shorter transit times and operating savings have become key factors for large container ships choosing the Suez Canal over the Cape of Good Hope route. He said CMA CGM made 104 Suez Canal voyages from January to May 2026, with total tonnage of 12.5m tonnes.
The Suez Canal Authority is the Egyptian state authority responsible for operating, maintaining and managing navigation through the Suez Canal.
CMA CGM is a French shipping and logistics group active in container liner shipping, port terminals and related logistics services.