French container shipping group CMA CGM says that from its previously-announced grant of €200m dedicated to companies in the the French maritime sector to accelerate their decarbonisation, €20m will be dedicated to the decarbonisation of fishing vessels.
The initiative was set up in November 2022 in partnership with the French government Maritime and Industry ministries (secrétariat d’État chargé de la Mer et le ministère délégué chargé de l’Industrie), and will make it possible to finance decarbonisation projects carried out by French industrial, maritime and port players in all sectors including fishing, passenger transport, sea freight, boating, ports and terminals.
CMA CGM’s contribution complements the Government’s “France Mer 2030” approach aimed at mobilising €300m in public funding by the end of the five-year term to support innovation, industrialisation and accelerate the decarbonisation of the maritime sector.
Bpifrance, a bank committed to the energy transition throughout the country, will deploy the funds to businesses and project leaders, in collaboration with various players and experts in the sector. The funds will be deployed, depending on the nature of the projects, in the form of grants, repayable advances, loans, equity or quasi-equity, where applicable in co-financing with other private funds or public funds deployed within the framework of the France 2030 plan.
Hervé Berville, Secretary of State for the Sea, announced that €20m out of the €200m total will directly benefit decarbonisation of fishing vessels. This envelope will contribute to accelerating the energy transition of sea fishing, both by retrofitting existing vessels and launching studies for the construction of new vessels integrating carbon-free solutions.
Rodolphe Saadé, Chairman and CEO, CMA CGM Group, said: “The energy transition is a major challenge and requires substantial financial resources. In this context, I wanted the CMA CGM Group to show solidarity by supporting the actors of the French maritime sector.”
