Carnival to bring two more cruise brands to China

Yesterday we reported that Norwegian Cruise line is to customize its second Breakway Plus newbuild for the Chinese market.

Today’s news is that Carnival Corporation & plc (NYSE/LSE: CCL; NYSE: CUK) is to deploy two additional cruise brands in China in 2017.

Carnival Cruise Line and AIDA Cruises will join Costa Cruises and Princess Cruises in the Chinese market, making Carnival Corporation the first company to operate four brands in China – which, it says, “is expected to eventually become the world’s largest cruise market based on surging demand for cruise vacations by Chinese travelers.”
 
The move means that four of Carnival’s ten brands will have at least one homeported cruise ship in China. The plan to deploy two additional ships – one new ship each for both its Carnival and AIDA brands – and operate four total brands in China in 2017 is in line with Carnival Corporation’s long-term, multi-brand strategy to provide Chinese travelers with a variety of vacation options and experiences to meet growing demand across all segments of the Chinese market.
 
“We are excited to introduce our Carnival Cruise Line and AIDA Cruises brands to our fleet in China, giving us a total of four global cruise brands in the market and a unique opportunity to provide a diverse lineup of brands and cruise offerings to Chinese guests who are looking for a great vacation experience,” said Carnival CEO Arnold Donald, who was in Shanghai to announce the news at the 10th Annual China Cruise Shipping and International Cruise Expo (CCS10). “As we execute our multi-brand growth strategy in China, we are emphasizing choice and variety in our offerings to match the different tastes and preferences of Chinese travelers.”
 
“As more and more Chinese are discovering why cruising is the best vacation experience, they are having a great time on our Costa and Princess brands, and we look forward to even more Chinese travelers enjoying vacations on our AIDA and Carnival brands,” said Mr. Donald. “This is an exciting time in China for the cruise industry, and as the world’s largest cruise company and the first global cruise operator in China, we are more committed than ever to helping China become one of the world’s most popular regions for cruise vacations.”

Adding the two new brands follows a July announcement by Carnival Corporation that Costa Cruises and Princess Cruises will  each put a new ship into its China fleet in 2016, making Carnival Corporation the first global cruise company with six total ships based in China. This all adds up to a 58 percent increase in total capacity in China in 2016, including three year-round ships and three seasonal ships in the market. Together, the Costa and Princess brands will potentially offer about four million passenger cruise days in 2016.
 
As previously reported, Carnival Corporation is also exploring potential joint ventures in China with China State Shipbuilding Corporation (CSSC) and China Merchants Group (CMG) designed to accelerate the growth of the overall cruise industry in China, including the possibility of launching a world-class Chinese domestic cruise brand, building new cruise ships in China, and supporting port and infrastructure development.

Ulstein offers Capex-friendly shallow water work horse

It says the main driver for the new 115.4 m x 30.8 m S182 design was to develop a “very CAPEX friendly” DP vessel with good capabilities to support various offshore operations, including cable lay and offshore construction.

The result is described as “a very versatile workhorse” that is capable of shallow water DP operations (at 4.5m draft) including beaching.

The design features a large open work deck that can accommodate up to 30 m ø carousel, a large cargo hold below deck and approximately 10,000 DWT capacity. A main offshore crane of up to 400 t can be located in the side of the vessel, while a passage way below main deck between the aft casings and accommodations avoids people having to cross the open work deck.

The vessel is capable of supporting a wide variety of operations:

Main particulars are:

Loa                             115.4 m           

Beam (molded)              30.8 m          

Depth                             8.4 m          

Draft (operational)           5.0 m

Deadweight             about 10,000 t

Speed                                 9 knots

Installed power             2 x 2,880 kW                                  

                                   2 x 1,920 kW

Positioning                   DP2                                  

                                  4-point mooring

Deck strength              15 t/ m2

Deck space                  2,000 m2

Cargo hold                      850 m2

Complement                    140 p (2 p cabins)                                        

                                       240 p (4 p cabins)

Petrofacs cancels shipyard contract for derrick lay vessel

OCTOBER 12, 2015 — U.K. based Petrofac (LON: PFC) says it has terminated its contract with Chinese shipbuilder ZPMC for construction of a proprietary design Petrofac JSD 6000 deepwater multi-purpose offshore vessel.

Underwriters sue expert witness for alleged negligence

OCTOBER 12, 2015 — In a case that shows the need for those acting as expert witnesses to have professional indemnity insurance, International Transport Intermediaries Club (ITIC) reports that hull & machinery

Cammell Laird to build $307 million polar research ship

The decision follows a 12-month competitive tender process that involved bids from shipyards in the U.K., Spain, Norway, Singapore and South Korea.

The Birkenhead shipyard is expected to cut steel in autumn 2016 and deliver the next generation polar research vessel ready for operation by 2019.

Cammell Laird Chief Executive John Syvret said: “The new contract, which will be finalized later this year, is expected to secure 400 jobs at Cammell Laird and a further 100 jobs within the local supply chain. Cammell Laird has a very successful apprenticeship scheme and would plan to recruit 60 apprentices throughout the term of the contract. Being selected as the preferred bidder in a global tender to undertake such an exciting and major infrastructure project is fantastic news for our workforce, the local region and the U.K. We look forward to helping the U.K. explore the depths of the ocean and push the boundaries of U.K. science.”

The new polar research ship, which will operate in both Antarctica and the Arctic, will be able to endure up to 60 days in sea-ice to enable scientists to gather more observations and data.

It is expected to have ice-breaking capabilities that will allow it to break ice up to one meter thick when traveling at 3 knots and will be able to accommodate up to 60 researchers and technical support staff.

The ship will be the first British-built polar research vessel with a heli-deck to open up new locations for science and will be one of the most sophisticated floating research laboratories operating in the Polar Regions.

Funding for the new polar research ship was announced in April 2014 as part of the U.K. Government’s science capital program.

Cammell Laird has been selected by the Natural Environment Research Council (NERC) through a full competitive procurement process.

NERC Chief Executive Professor Duncan Wingham said: “This new research ship, which is expected to become operational in 2019, will be equipped with onboard laboratory facilities and will be capable of deploying robotic technologies to monitor environmental changes to the polar oceans and will help U.K. scientists continue to lead the world in understanding our polar regions.

“Changes in both the Antarctic and Artic marine ecosystems affect the U.K.’s environment and economy, particularly in industries such as fishing and tourism. The Natural Environment Research Council funds polar research so that as a nation, we can develop policies to adapt to, mitigate or live with environmental change.

“This new polar ship will be a platform for a broad range of science, researching subjects from oceanography and marine ecology to geophysics.”

The new ice-strengthened ship will be operated by British Antarctic Survey (BAS), on behalf of NERC.

ABS offers guide for “SOx Scrubber Ready” ships

 

Instead, when ordering a newbuilding they may prefer to order a ship that is “SOx scrubber ready.”

Classification society ABS says that, Iin order to facilitate future modifications, ship buyers and shipbuilders must make a significant effort to figure out what features should be incorporated on a vessel and incorporate these in the shipbuilding contract.

To support shipowners taking this path, ABS has published the ABS Guide for SOx Scrubber Ready Vessels to support members and clients in preparing newbuilds for future outfitting with a SOx exhaust gas cleaning system (EGCS).

The guide supports the ABS classification notation for SOx Scrubber Ready Vessels by formalizing the process for clients who wish to plan for retrofit of a SOx scrubber at a future date by providing a detailed review and approval and an associated notation.

The SOx Scrubber Ready notation is in addition to ABS EGCS notations that may be assigned for vessels fitted with an exhaust emission abatement system, including SOx scrubbers, selective catalytic reduction systems and exhaust gas recirculation arrangements for NOx emission control, in accordance with the ABS Guide for Exhaust Emission Abatement.

More HERE and HERE

 

Deltamarin and Brevik launch gas carrier design

 

A new multigas carrier design uses the successful B. Delta bulk carrier hull from Finland’s Deltamarin to carry gas in new-generation cylindrical gas tanks developed by Vard affiliate Brevik Technology AS.

The design can be utilized for LNG, LPG, LEG and ethane carriers.

“Up to now gas carriers have been complex and expensive to design and construct. This is not the case anymore as Brevik Technology has developed cylindrical steel tanks, which are separate from the vessel hull,” says Brevik Technology’s Managing Director Øystein Kristoffersen Sæther.

Brevik Technology’s independent gas carrying method challenges the traditional and expensive way of building the vessel and the tanks as one entity. The patented containment design has already been approved by classification societies.

BrevikThe cylindrical tank design allows the tanks to expand in all directions without putting stress on the vessel hull. The independent containment system, which can be built into a vessel as is, results in better possibilities to utilize the existing well-proven ship design.

“This is where the shipowner can get significant benefits by choosing a readily available and highly efficient B.Delta hull design already proven in operation”, says Deltamarin’s Managing Director Mika Laurilehto.

The design based on the B.Delta is actually a bulk carrier design equipped with cylindrical tanks for the gas cargo.
“As a bulk carrier, the vessel is easier and cheaper to build compared to a traditional gas carrier, and there may be many new potential shipyards capable of constructing such a vessel,” says Mr. Laurilehto.

The new design is now available for the market for smaller-scale gas carriers of 31,000 cu.m, with similar designs for medium- and larger-scale vessels to follow.

The design will also be available for retrofit vessels, such as the conversion of a bulk carrier to gas carrier.

 

Norwegian to customize newbuild for China market

Originally, the second Breakaway Plus ship was to be called “Norwegian Bliss,” a name chosen from a long list of suggestions from Facebook fans. Today, though, Norwegian said that the ship’s name, homeport, accommodations, dining and entertainment  “will be shared in the coming months.”

Accommodations, cuisine and onboard experiences will cater to the unique vacation preferences of Chinese guests.

“Our new purpose-built ship for China will have characteristics that are authentic to Norwegian Cruise Line and yet distinctively Chinese in all of its sensibility,” said Norwegian Cruise Line Holdings CEO Frank Del Rio, who made the announcement today at the CruiseWorld China summit in Shanghai.  

“With this new ship, Norwegian will unquestionably offer our Chinese guests a superior product and introduce a new standard of innovation and excellence into the marketplace, with an unrivaled level of customization for the Chinese consumer,” said Mr. Del Rio. “It will perfectly suit what modern Chinese travelers value from an upscale cruise experience.”

The cruise line says that the 4,200 guest ship “will provide the same sense of freedom and flexibility found on all Norwegian Cruise Line ships, but with experiences and amenities designed specifically with Chinese guest in mind” and that “the level of customization will go beyond the physical design of the ship.”

 

To support its expansion efforts in China, Norwegian Cruise Line Holdings has opened offices in Beijing (Guomao CBD) and Hong Kong (Quarry Bay) and today opened its Shanghai office in Xintiandi.

The offices support all three brands in the company’s portfolio – Norwegian Cruise Line, Oceania Cruises and Regent Seven Seas Cruises.

MAN Diesel & Turbo nets another fisheries segment order

OCTOBER 9, 2015 — Voyager Fishing Company, Ltd., based in Kilkeel, Northern Ireland, has ordered an 86.4 m trawler/purse seiner from Danish shipbuilder Karstensens Skibsværft. To be named Voyager, the vessel is

Boskalis to sea trial “drop in” bio-fuels

“We strongly believe in the need for sustainable ‘drop in’ marine bio-fuels and their potential as part of the long term fuel mix, as we see them as an important means of improving the sustainability of the industry,” said Theo Baartmans, COO of Boskalis. “Participating in this pilot and making our vessels available is in line with Boskalis’ approach to seeking innovations that work hand in hand with sustainability.”

Drop in bio-fuels are liquid hydrocarbons that are functionally equivalent to petroleum derived fuels, meaning that they can be effectively interchanged with conventional fuels. Minimal engine modifications may be necessary in some cases.

Boskalis says that right now bio-fuels “are not part of the marine fuel mix that operators and owners can choose from” and that this means that shipping is missing an opportunity to utilize what should be a price competitive, environmentally friendly fuel option.

Boskalis and its partners believe that bio-fuels will play a viable role in reducing emissions that no other fuel can currently achieve, without a capital-intensive fleet renewal or retrofitting.

The three companies will test several next generation bio-fuels at the Wärtsilä laboratory in Vaasa, Finland before carrying out sea trials in various Boskalis’ global fleet.

The pilot program will focus on delivering and analyzing a sustainable feedstock, securing industry certification, and preparing the building blocks for large-scale production. Additionally, the consortium will initiate a global scalability study involving leading shipowners, universities, NGOs, ports, biofuel companies and other industry stakeholders. The aim will be to identify tangible opportunities for scaling supply to the world’s commercial shipping fleet.

Netherlands-based GoodFuels Marine, which has been developed by a team with track record in commercializing sustainable bio-fuels for the aviation industry, has also created a “sustainability advisory board,” consisting of leading NGOs and academics. Its role is to ensure that fuels are 100% sustainable, and that GoodFuels Marine complies with standards and principles set by the Roundtable on Sustainable Biomaterials (RSB)

“Wärtsilä, together with its customers, is highly committed to continuously finding better, more sustainable marine engine solutions,” says Roger Holm, Senior Vice President, Engines, Wärtsilä Marine Solutions. “This is another great example of that commitment, whereby we support pioneering innovations that provide ship operators with greater flexibility and choice about how they can reduce emissions.”

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