Singapore-based shipowner X-Press Feeders is growing its French subsidiary from its base in Marseille

Eastaway France operates its fleet powered by green methanol from Marseille

With the International Maritime Organisation introducing updated environmental regulations aimed at limitingCO₂ emissions from ships, Singapore-based X-Press Feeders is embarking on an ambitious energy transition strategy by acquiring ships powered by certified green methanol. As part of this project, Eastaway France was created in 2023 and its headquarters were established in Marseille in 2024 with Jean-François Luiggi as director. Provence Promotion has been helping the feeder carrier company with human resources and the company aims to assemble a team of 12 people in charge of 14 ships, including seven flying the French flag. The first ships are already in service and all 14 are scheduled to be delivered by the end of 2026.

Founded in 1972 in Singapore, X-Press Feeders is an international leader specialising in the feeder ship sector, which provides container transport between major global ports and secondary regional ports. The company has around 100 medium-sized container ships based in Asia, the Middle East, Africa, the Caribbean, Latin America, the Mediterranean, and Europe.

As part of its commitment to the International Convention for the Prevention of Pollution from Ships (MARPOL), X-Press Feeders has decided to upgrade and renew part of its fleet as it works to consolidate its presence in Northern Europe. The company has ordered 14 new dual-fuel ships powered by green methanol, which will reduce its carbon footprint. The use of green methanol, supplied from Rotterdam, reduces CO₂ emissions by at least 60% while significantly limiting emissions of fine particles such as nitrogen oxides (NOx) and sulphur oxides (SOx). This is a key landmark for the Singaporean shipowner as it is now pursuing its European development strategy within the framework of the green transition.

Eastaway France establishes its headquarters in Marseille

X-Press Feeders created its subsidiary Eastaway France to manage the new green energy vessels following a campaign by the French International Register (RIF) to have the boats registered in France.

“The tax arrangements offered by the RIF make France an extremely attractive location for international shipowners and shipping companies. This is in addition to programmes such as the French tax-based leasing system, which encourages investment in ships, and the tonnage tax regime, which is the international standard for the industry. Within this favourable context, X-Press Feeders seized the opportunity to set up its subsidiary in France. Thanks to Provence Promotion, we were able to benefit from highly effective support in terms of international mobility for one of our employees who had come from Singapore,” explains Jean-François Luiggi, who has built a team of eight people at Eastaway with further recruitment planned.

Anchoring a European strategy in Marseille

“Along with the Port of Marseille Fos, one of the major advantages of Marseille is its talent pool. The presence of global leaders such as CMA CGM and diverse actors in the international maritime economy contributes to structuring an environment that offers a highly skilled ecosystem with expertise in areas such as global maritime trade, ship operation management, and legislative and regulatory frameworks,” says Jean-François Luiggi, who has more than 25 years of experience in the maritime sector in Marseille.

Six of the new dual-fuel ships ordered by X-Press Feeders are already in service on the Baltic Sea on the Green Baltic X-PRESS (GBX) and Green Finland X-PRESS (GFX) lines. They provide freight services from Rotterdam to ports inBelgium, Lithuania, Latvia, Estonia, and Finland. The other ships will be delivered progressively before the end of 2026. Eastaway will operate seven French-flagged vessels from Marseille.

This fleet, the first in France to be powered by green methanol, embodies X-Press Feeders’ commitment to decarbonisation as it has become the first container ship operator to use this type of low-emission vessel on short-distance feeder shipping routes.

X-Press Feeders ranks 14th in the world in terms of container transport capacity, according to the Alphaliner shipping information platform. The company has 400 employees worldwide.