Princess build's Two New Ships

scalise12 · July 23, 2018

Princess inks MoA for two 175,000gt newbuilds, first LNG-powered cruise ships built in Italy for Carnival

Princess and Fincantieri have a long history - Majestic Princess delivery in 2017 was built at Monfalcone shipyard

Fincantieri signed a memorandum of agreement with Princess Cruises for the construction of two next-generation, 175,000gt ships which will be the largest built so far in Italy, with deliveries scheduled in Monfalcone in late 2023 and in spring 2025.

The vessels will accommodate approximately 4,300 guests and will be based on a next-generation platform design and the first Princess Cruises ships to be dual-fuel powered, primarily by LNG.

The delivery schedule from late 2023 makes the first vessel also the first LNG cruise ship to be delivered at an Italian shipyard (subsidiary Vard is building a hybrid ship for Ponant in Romania for delivery in 2021) as the first (of two) TUI Cruises’ LNG-powered ships inked at Fincantieri announced recently is due in 2024.

First LNG-powered cruise ships built by Fincantieri for Carnival

The pair are also first LNG-powered cruise ships built by Fincantieri for Carnival Corp & plc.

‘This revolutionary platform for next-generation, LNG-powered cruise ships will introduce innovative design and leisure experiences driven by the future vacation and lifestyle trends of our guests – further evolving the already best-in-class Princess Cruises experience we deliver today. We look forward to collaborating with Fincantieri to bring our vision for this next- generation premium cruise ship into service,’ said Jan Swartz, president of Princess Cruises.

Giuseppe Bono, ceo of Fincantieri, stated: ‘We are proud to further extend our long-established partnership with Princess Cruises, a brand we are indeed tied to since our comeback to the cruise ship industry in 1990. After so many years, we are getting ready to enter, together, into a new era of our industry, increasingly aimed at reducing environmental impact.’

Carnival group - the largest foreign investor in Italy

Bono concluded on the news said, ‘this allows us to keep a solid partnership between our country and the Carnival group - the largest foreign investor in Italy - and at the same time to maintain know-how and increase employment.’

Fincantieri has built 85 cruise ships since 1990 (62 from 2002), 65 of which for Carnival’s different brands, while other 49, including agreements, are currently being designed or built in the Group’s yards.

Additional reporting from Italy by Luca Peruzzi.

Posted 23 July 2018