NICOLAS DELMAS, today sailing as CMA CGM SAHARA, is a geared container ship built in Taiwan in 2002. The vessel spent more than 22 years under the NICOLAS DELMAS name, initially in the Delmas fleet and later within the wider CMA CGM/Comanav organisation. In December 2024, she was renamed CMA CGM SAHARA, transferred from the Bahamas to the Moroccan flag and registered at Tangier.
Built by China Shipbuilding Corporation (CSBC) at Kaohsiung, the vessel is a CSBC 2200-class containership. She measures 195.60 metres in length and 30.20 metres in beam, with a gross tonnage of 26,061 GT and deadweight of approximately 30,453 tonnes. Her operational capacity is listed at 2,207 TEU, including around 350 reefer plugs, while the original design figure is sometimes quoted as 2,226 TEU.
Vessel Details
Current Name: CMA CGM SAHARA
Name at time of PiraeuShips recording: NICOLAS DELMAS
IMO: 9220861
Current MMSI: 242494400
Current Call Sign: CNA6064
Former MMSI: 311326000
Former Call Sign: C6SF5
Type: Geared Container Ship
Design: CSBC 2200
Current Flag: Morocco
Current Port of Registry: Tangier
Former Flag: Bahamas
Former Port of Registry: Nassau
Built: 2002
Delivered: 5 June 2002
Builder: China Shipbuilding Corporation, Kaohsiung, Taiwan
Yard Number: 775
Current Owner: Compagnie Marocaine de Navigation S.A. / Comanav
Operator / Commercial Management: CMA CGM / Comanav
Classification: Bureau Veritas
Length Overall: 195.60 m
Beam: 30.20 m
Summer Draught: approx. 11.0 m
Gross Tonnage: 26,061 GT
Deadweight: approx. 30,453 t
Container Capacity: 2,207 TEU
Original Design Capacity: approx. 2,226 TEU
Reefer Plugs: 350
Cargo Gear: 3 × 45 t cranes
Main Engine: MAN-B&W 8S70MC-C
Main Engine Power: approx. 24,850 kW
Service Speed: approx. 21.5 knots
Current Status: Active.
Construction and Design
NICOLAS DELMAS was one of a series of CSBC 2200-class containerships constructed at Kaohsiung. Her keel was laid on 25 April 2001, she was launched on 12 October 2001 and delivered on 5 June 2002 as yard number 775. Sister ships from the same programme included Marie Delmas, Catherine Delmas, Julie Delmas, Louis Delmas and Irma Delmas.
Unlike many modern feeder ships, NICOLAS DELMAS is geared, with three 45-tonne cargo cranes. This allows her to handle containers at ports where large shore-based gantry cranes are unavailable. Detailed contemporary specifications record five cargo holds and a MAN-B&W eight-cylinder low-speed diesel engine.
For the engine I would use MAN-B&W 8S70MC-C, approximately 24.8 MW. Some secondary databases incorrectly show a six-cylinder engine; detailed original ship data and contemporary records consistently identify an 8-cylinder 8S70MC-C.
More Than 22 Years as NICOLAS DELMAS
The vessel entered service in 2002 as NICOLAS DELMAS, named in the traditional Delmas style. She initially traded under Delmas ownership and management, flying the Bahamas flag from Nassau. Delmas later became part of the CMA CGM Group, while the vessel became increasingly associated with Moroccan shipping company Comanav.
Ownership and management changed several times behind the scenes while the ship kept the same name. Historical records show periods under DBC 775 Ltd., Comanav and Maghrebail, while CMA CGM progressively assumed commercial and technical management.
That makes her name history unusually simple:
NICOLAS DELMAS (2002–2024) → CMA CGM SAHARA (2024–present)
Renamed CMA CGM SAHARA
The major visible change finally came in December 2024, when IMO 9220861 was renamed CMA CGM SAHARA. At the same time, the vessel transferred from the Bahamas flag to Morocco. Her new identification became:
MMSI: 242494400
Call Sign: CNA6064
Flag: Morocco
Port of Registry: Tangier.
Gard's current 2026 insurance records identify Compagnie Marocaine de Navigation S.A. as owner, confirm the Moroccan flag, Bureau Veritas class, 26,061 GT and 30,453 dwt, and list NICOLAS DELMAS as the vessel's former name.
CMA CGM SAHARA remains active in 2026, operating in Mediterranean container trades.
Piraeus Connection
NICOLAS DELMAS has a documented connection with Piraeus. The original PiraeuShips page was published in December 2016, when the vessel was still flying the Bahamas flag with MMSI 311326000 and call sign C6SF5.
The ship continued to visit Piraeus afterwards. An independent photographic record documents NICOLAS DELMAS at the Piraeus anchorage on 24 November 2021, confirming that her association with the port extended well beyond the original PiraeuShips recording.
PiraeuShips Record
NICOLAS DELMAS was recorded at Piraeus by PiraeuShips during her long Bahamas-flagged career under the name she carried for more than two decades. Built in Taiwan in 2002, the geared container ship became closely associated with Delmas, Comanav and the CMA CGM network. In December 2024, IMO 9220861 was renamed CMA CGM SAHARA and transferred to the Moroccan register. The original PiraeuShips footage therefore preserves the vessel under an identity that disappeared after more than 22 years of service.
Original video footage © PiraeuShips. All rights reserved.
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