Grande Svezia, the second vessel in Grimaldi Group’s new-generation pure car and truck carrier (PCTC) series, made its inaugural call at Le Havre’s Quai de Bougainville on 24 February.

Built by China Merchants Heavy Industry (Jiangsu), the 220-metre-long vessel has a beam of 38 metres and a capacity of 9,000 car equivalent units (CEU) across 14 decks configured to handle both electric and conventional vehicles.

Operated locally by Manutention SMR and represented in France by Grimaldi France SAS, headquartered in Le Havre, the ship will form part of a regular service including two to three monthly calls at the French port.

The vessel is classified as Ammonia Ready, meaning it has been designed to allow future conversion to operate on ammonia as an alternative fuel, in line with anticipated international regulations and carbon-neutrality targets.

For port operations, Grande Svezia is equipped with a 5 MWh lithium battery system capable of powering onboard systems without the use of auxiliary engines. The vessel also features cold ironing capability, enabling connection to shore power where infrastructure is available to eliminate local atmospheric emissions while alongside.

According to Haropa Port, the ship incorporates several energy efficiency measures compared with earlier PCTC generations. These include 2,500 square metres of photovoltaic panels, a silicone hull coating combined with an air lubrication system to reduce hydrodynamic resistance, and a gate rudder configuration designed to improve propulsion efficiency and manoeuvrability.

The vessel is also fitted with a selective catalytic reduction (SCR) system compliant with IMO Tier III standards for nitrogen oxides (NOx), along with equipment to reduce sulphur oxides (SOx) and particulate emissions. It has been awarded Green Plus and Green Star 3 certifications.

Grande Svezia follows its sister ship Grande Shanghai in a series of 10 PCTCs aimed at supporting evolving global automotive trade flows, including the growth in electric vehicle shipments.

Its service rotation includes Wallhamn, Hamburg, Antwerp, Southampton, Vigo, Valencia, Piraeus, Izmir, Limassol, Ashdod, Alexandria, Gemlik, Autoport, Salerno, Le Havre, Southampton, Esbjerg, and Wallhamn.