A liquefied natural gas (LNG) dual-fuel "ro-ro" (roll-on/roll-off) cargo vessel departed Shanghai on its maiden voyage to Europe on Wednesday, transporting about 5,000 cars of indigenous Chinese brands and some construction machinery.

The vessel, measuring 200 meters in length and 38 meters in width, with a capacity of carrying 7,600 cars, is the largest serving clean-energy "ro-ro" ship in terms of loading capacity that has been invested and built by Chinese ship builders.

The duel-fuel design allows the vessel to be powered by LNG, low sulfur fuel oil or the traditional light diesel, which helps reduce the vessel's carbon emissions by about 30 percent compared to traditional car-carrying "ro-ro" ships, said Jin Qi, general manager of the SAIC Anji Logistics Co., Ltd.

On a round trip to Europe, for example, the total carbon emissions could be reduced by 1,300 tonnes, Jin said, adding that the vessel is expected to ship about 30,000 indigenous cars abroad annually in the future.

In light of the robust demand for shipping Chinese new-energy cars abroad, the vessel was designed to meet the safety needs of shipping new-energy cars and, potentially, hydrogen-fueled vehicles and natural gas vehicles, Jin said.