NCL tries to put a positive spin on $211.8 million loss

mercedes · April 7, 2009

Norwegian Cruise Line lost $211.8 million in 2008, the line disclosed today. (The number is in line with what this blog projected last week.)

In a press release, officials of course tried to put a positive spin on the red ink. NCL is not publicly traded and was not required to disclose the information.

NCL CEO Kevin Sheehan said the company "achieved record results" in 2008, in what he said was an "extremely challenging economy."

He said with management changes and fleet changes (including moving two ships out of Hawaii), NCL has emerged a company that is "extremely focused on customer service, financial performance and is well poised to come through this difficult period."

According to the report, NCL has renegotiated lender terms, refinancing about $800 million in debt that it had coming due this year and next, with shareholders putting in an additional $100 million. The line paid shipyard STX $128.8 million when it canceled plans for its second Epic-class ship – the first, the 4,200-passenger Norwegian Epic, is under construction in France and due to debut in May 2010 (bookings open this May 20).

Net loss was $83 million (before the payout for the canceled order), compared to $224.4 million in 2007.

As for this year, the company is reporting "strong bookings," with a rise of 15% year-over-year through March 15. But there was no specific projection in the release as to anticipated yields on those bookings.

"This is an extremely exciting time for Norwegian Cruise Line. We transformed the Company, improved our financial performance, negotiated new lender terms and received additional financial support from shareholders," Sheehan said.

He said Peter Greenberg's documentary featuring NCL on CNBC also helped showcase the company.

"All of these elements are helping us to weather this challenging climate," Sheehan said.

NCL is owned by Apollo Management and Star Cruises.