May 23rd, 2024
From left ro right : le Lombarde, le Vésine et l’Albe, with their crews - Photo credit : Emmanuel Bonici
The Albe, the Lombarde, and the Vesine join the fleet of the River Transport Company, a subsidiary of the Sogestran group.
Intended to navigate the Rhône between Lyon and Marseille to transport biofuels, fuels, gasoline bases, and methanol, these self-propelled vessels are dedicated to clients or products for long-term contracts.
These three units illustrate the evolution of the company’s fleet from the pusher/barge model to the self-propelled model, which is more efficient in terms of energy. They have been named according to the company’s tradition: giving names of winds to liquid bulk self-propelled vessels.
The christening took place at the CFT Rhône-Saône site in Loire-Sur-Rhône, within the industrial-port zone of the Compagnie Nationale du Rhône, in the presence of the three godmothers: Frédérique Bourgeois from Voies Navigables de France, Irène Heric from Adisseo, and Elise Thomazo from Total Energies.
For Matthieu Blanc, Director of River Operations for the Sogestran Group:
“These three investments perfectly illustrate the raison d’être of the Sogestran group: to safely accompany our clients’ goods. As the French leader in the river transport of industrial goods, CFT has an exemplary position to uphold in river transport in France and abroad.
The investments in these three self-propelled vessels are the result of the trust-based relationships we have with our clients, a trust that has been built day by day through the quality work of our teams.
We would like to thank our partners, Voies Navigables de France and the Compagnie Nationale du Rhône, for their support: we have received assistance through VNF’s PAMI program and through CNR’s 5Rhône plan.”
Several months to bring each self-propelled vessel up to the standards of the company and its clients.
Each self-propelled vessel was acquired in Northern Europe and transported by semi-submersible to Fos-Sur-Mer. In Loire-Sur-Rhône, they were conditioned, cleaned, refurbished, and brought up to the standards of the company, the clients, and the requirements of the Rhône basin (in terms of HSE, technical aspects, as well as crew comfort for life on board and ergonomics).
Three new crews hard at work.
"In a context of a tight labor market, we are pleased to have managed to assemble three crews from different backgrounds: some mariners previously navigated on container barge convoys, others on liquid bulk pusher/barge convoys, and others in passenger transport. The sense of belonging and pride is already very strong, as each crew takes ownership of their self-propelled vessel and takes great care of it!" explains Charles Drouet, Director of CFT Rhône.
Before setting sail, the crews were already hard at work getting to know the new unit and its documentation, conducting tests and drills, relabeling to identify all the controls, and performing maintenance throughout the preparation period of the self-propelled vessels.
Reconfiguration of the Company’s Fleet.
These three new self-propelled vessels illustrate a fundamental trend at CFT: the shift from the pusher/barge model to the self-propelled model, driven by the company’s evolving business model and environmental requirements.
The self-propelled vessel is inherently more energy efficient: the shape of the hull and the sizing of the engines significantly reduce fuel consumption (a 20% decrease has been observed).
Furthermore, as the crews are more responsible for a dedicated self-propelled vessel, maintenance and upkeep in operational conditions are optimal.
Technical Specifications: 110 m x 11,40 m / Capacity : 3 600 m3
Learn more about the Company: The River Transport Company is the French leader in the inland waterway transport of industrial goods. It operates on the Seine, Rhône, Loire, Rhine, and Danube rivers. As a subsidiary of the family-owned Sogestran group, CFT has around 300 employees (both navigational and sedentary). The group values include trust, agility, pride, and commitment.
Other news from the group
| December 20th, 2024 |
20.12.24 |
Arles Port: Designation of the Sub-Concessionaire Consortium for the Operation and Modernization of the Port |
| December 19th, 2024 |
19.12.24 |
Sogestran acquires the inland liquid bulk transport subsidiary of Reederei Jaegers |
| December 10th, 2024 |
10.12.24 |
Renewal of the Morlenn Express Fleet |
| December 3rd, 2024 |
03.12.24 |
Christening of the ZULU 06, France’s first hydrogen-powered inland vessel |
| November 26th, 2024 |
26.11.24 |
Discovering the Role of a Maitenance Supervisor |
| November 15th, 2024 |
15.11.24 |
Christening of Energy Stockholm, the largest LNG bunker vessel in Europe |
| November 6th, 2024 |
06.11.24 |
Christiania Shipping acquires Navquim |
| September 11th, 2024 |
11.09.24 |
CFT christens a new self-propelled vessel on the Seine |
| September 2nd, 2024 |
02.09.24 |
Christiania Shipping to acquire Navquim |
| August 28th, 2024 |
28.08.24 |
Energy Stockholm - Sea trials |
| July 18th, 2024 |
18.07.24 |
[Vidéo] Navigation of the Pointe de Caux |
| June 26th, 2024 |
26.06.24 |
Working Together for Sustainable Action - NFPS 2023 |
| March 1st, 2024 |
01.03.24 |
[Video] Maritime Transport Jobs - Join the companies of th Sogestran Group |
| February 5th, 2024 |
05.02.24 |
Wisamo - Our Contribution to Sailing Industry Research |
| January 18th, 2024 |
18.01.24 |
A new Sogestran Logistics warehouse at the Gennevilliers port |
| November 28th, 2023 |
28.11.23 |
[Video] The maritime activity of the Sogestran Group |
| October 20th, 2023 |
20.10.23 |
An urban river logistics solution right in the heart of Paris |
| September 21st, 2023 |
21.09.23 |
Sogestran Group celebrates its 75th anniversary |
| September 13th, 2023 |
13.09.23 |
Zulu06: Hydrogen-Powered Self-Propelled Vessel Project |
| July 11th, 2023 |
11.07.23 |
Europe’s largest inland waterway LNG bunker barge, owned by LNG Shipping and chartered by Shell, hits the water |
| July 3rd, 2023 |
03.07.23 |
Publication of the 2022 CSR report |
| March 14th, 2023 |
14.03.23 |
Keel laying of 8000 m3 inland LNG bunker barge owned and operated by LNG Shipping, chartered by Shell |
| March 3rd, 2023 |
03.03.23 |
Sogestran Logistics Launches SoBlue, France’s First Decarbonized Containerized Inland Waterway Service |
| February 2nd, 2023 |
02.02.23 |
OCEOS launches its website |
| December 8th, 2022 |
08.12.22 |
Transport of two satellite containers by the MN Colibri |
| September 13th, 2022 |
13.09.22 |
Air Liquide and Sogestran form the joint venture OCEOS for CO2 shipping and barging |
| September 8th, 2022 |
08.09.22 |
Delivery of the POINTE DE CAUX |
| June 20th, 2022 |
20.06.22 |
De Poli becomes NAVQUIM under Sogestran management |
| April 5th, 2022 |
05.04.22 |
Air Liquide and Sogestran partner to develop shipping solutions for carbon management |
| April 1st, 2022 |
01.04.22 |
Launch of the POINTE DE CAUX |
| July 21st, 2021 |
21.07.21 |
Jérémie Mion meets the Sogestran group’s teams |
| July 15th, 2021 |
15.07.21 |
Dubbelman and Sogestran Sign Definitive Acquisition Agreement to Integrate Dubbelman Group in Sogestran Logistics |
| June 23rd, 2021 |
23.06.21 |
Sogestran group welcomes Jérémie Mion on board |
| November 26th, 2020 |
26.11.20 |
Sogestran invests in the chemical tankers business |
| February 4th, 2020 |
04.02.20 |
The Sogestran group and the COMPAGNIE MARITIME NANTAISE - MN associate with NEOLINE. |
| June 24th, 2019 |
24.06.19 |
‘LNG London’ bunker vessel begins operations in Europe |
| October 22nd, 2018 |
22.10.18 |
The Sogestran Group inaugurates an office in French Guiana |
| October 4th, 2018 |
04.10.18 |
The Sogestran Group in video |
| July 3rd, 2018 |
03.07.18 |
Intermodal transport within the Group is evolving |
| June 8th, 2018 |
08.06.18 |
Nord Ports Shuttle launches a new service |
| May 3rd, 2018 |
03.05.18 |
Official inauguration of the scheduled FlexiLoire river service line |
| March 6th, 2018 |
06.03.18 |
The Pontias under construction |
| December 8th, 2017 |
08.12.17 |
An environmental trophy awarded to CFT for its fluvial fleet |
| October 17th, 2017 |
17.10.17 |
Inauguration ceremony of the Mayoury |
| September 29th, 2017 |
29.09.17 |
Inauguration of the largest French Roll-on / Roll-off ramp |
| August 8th, 2017 |
08.08.17 |
Inland navigation: directly from the ship to the barge |
| July 26th, 2017 |
26.07.17 |
Arianespace package transfer |
| June 28th, 2017 |
28.06.17 |
Acquisition by Sogestran of Compagnie Maritime Nantaise (MN) |
| June 2nd, 2017 |
02.06.17 |
LNG (Liquefied Natural Gas) - The Group innovates for the future |
| April 15th, 2017 |
15.04.17 |
Double rotation of transformers, 278 tonnes each |
| October 20th, 2016 |
20.10.16 |
Lapresta’s first loading at the Total refinery in Antwerp |
