Fincantieri resumes production at Monfalcone

Carnival Vista has been towed to new location at Monfalcone shipyard

JULY 7, 2015 — Fincantieri reports that yesterday the Prosecutor’s Office of Gorizia ordered the release of areas of the Monfalcone shipyard that had been closed as part of an investigation into alleged improper disposal of shipyard waste (see earlier story).

Fincantieri said that production workers at the yard would be resuming work as of today and thanked “the Government, the institutions and all those who in recent days have spoken out in favor of the protection of the company and the right to work, which shall always be safeguarded, especially when the safety and health of workers is not called into question.”

But the shipbuilder added that it had learned “with surprise” that the same prosecutor had served the director of the shipyard with a notice of investigation relating to alleged violations of environmental protection regulations.

Production of one major newbuilding that reportedly had been affected by the shutdown is back on track.

The newest, largest and most innovative ship in the Carnival Cruises fleet, the 133,500-ton Carnival Vista has now been floated out from the building dock and towed to a new location at the Monfalcone yard, marking a significant construction milestone.

The cruise ship is set for a May 1, 2016 debut.

Carnival Vista will operate a schedule of European cruises from May to October 2016. Following a trans-Atlantic crossing, she will operate a pair of voyages from New York in November 2016 then launch year-round Caribbean departures from Miami later that month.