Sail-driven cargo ship Neoliner Origin. Image Credit: Neoliner

• Neoliner Origin made its first call in Belgium at PSA Zeebrugge on Monday
• Zeebrugge joins Montoir-de-Bretagne, Saint-Pierre-et-Miquelon, Baltimore, and Halifax on the rotation
• Rotation now five weeks in summer and six in winter, around ten a year
• Vessel designed to use more than 80% less fuel than a conventional ship at 15 knots

The wind-powered roll-on/roll-off cargo ship Neoliner Origin made its first call in Belgium on Monday as Zeebrugge joined its regular transatlantic service, operator NEOLINE and CMA CGM said in a joint press release on Tuesday.

The vessel called at PSA Zeebrugge on September 21, and the extended rotation now links Zeebrugge, Montoir-de-Bretagne, Saint-Pierre-et-Miquelon, Baltimore, and Halifax.

The round trip is expected to take five weeks in summer and six in winter, or around ten rotations a year, with the companies saying the new call adds only a few days while keeping the transit-time commitments made to existing customers shipping from Montoir-de-Bretagne.

Nantes-based NEOLINE says the addition of Zeebrugge, part of the Port of Antwerp-Bruges, responds to demand from shippers and partners for direct access to the service from a hub with strong connections to Belgium, the Netherlands, Germany, and northern France, and that the call strengthens its prospects for return cargo ahead of a possible fleet expansion.

CMA CGM, which supported the development of the vessel, now offers the service to its own customers and other shippers looking to cut emissions from their transatlantic supply chains.

Neoliner Origin is a 136-metre ro-ro carrying rolling, containerised, and out-of-gauge freight, with wind as its main propulsion and an auxiliary diesel-electric system.

Its two foldable SolidSail masts carry 3,000 square metres of sail, and on the North Atlantic route the ship is designed to use more than 80% less fuel than a conventional vessel sailing at 15 knots, according to the release, with a commercial speed of 11 knots.

The ship entered service in October 2025 and, according to NEOLINE, has since completed six transatlantic round trips.