STX France SA has signed a contract with the French owner Brittany Ferries for a LNG ferry slated for delivery at the end of 2016.

In the prepared statement, the shipbuilder said that “this ship sets major milestones in the field of motorization and energy storage and opens the way to a new generation of environmental friendly ships.”

Code named PEGASIS (Power Efficient GAS Innovative Ship), it is one of the 34 projects of the New Industrial France and results from ECORIZON program.

The order follows several years of cooperation with Brittany Ferries (BAI). The project which has received also support from GICAN, French Maritime Cluster and Regional Council of Pays de la Loire, exceeds the new regulatory requirements in terms of exhaust gas emissions settled by MARPOL convention which will be reinforced on Jan.1, 2015.

The dual-fuel engines using LNG as the main source of energy will cut out her SOx emissions and will reduce her NOx emissions by 80% CO2 by 20%.

With a length of 210 meters and beam of about 31 meters, the ferry will have 675 passenger cabins and will be able to accommodate 2,600 persons onboard, including 2,400 passengers.

She will have three decks for vehicles. The maximum cargo capacity will be 80 trucks, and in mix-cargo configuration, the ship will be able to carry 40 trucks and 650 light vehicles.

This contract represents about 2.6 million working hours for STX France and its sub-contractors. Production is scheduled to start at the beginning of 2015. It will be enforced after settlement of the financing issues.