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Two NCLH units price $1.10 billion note offerings

Details: Written by Kari Reinikainen Kari Reinikainen; Category: More News More News; Published: 03 March 2021 03 March 2021

Two subsidiaries of Norwegian Cruise Line Holdings Ltd. (NCLH) have priced two note offerings totaling at $1.10 billion.

NCL Corporation Ltd. (NCLC) announced that it has priced $575 million aggregate principal amount of its 5.875% Senior Notes due 2026, which were offered in a private offering.

“The NCLC Notes will form part of the same series as the $850 million aggregate principal amount of 5.875% Senior Notes due 2026 issued on December 18, 2020 and will be guaranteed by certain of NCLC’s subsidiaries on a senior unsecured basis. The price to investors will be 100.000% of the principal amount of the NCLC Notes,” NCLH said in a statement.

Meanwhile NCL Finance, Ltd. subsidiary of NCLC, has also priced $525 million aggregate principal amount of its 6.125% Senior Notes due 2028 which were also offered in a private offering. The NCL Finance Notes will be guaranteed by NCLC and certain of NCLC’s subsidiaries on a senior unsecured basis. The price to investors would be 100.000% of the principal amount of the NCL Finance Notes.

“The offerings of the Notes are expected to close on March 3, 2021, subject to customary closing conditions. NCLC and NCL Finance expect to use the net proceeds from the offerings to fully repay the aggregate principal amounts outstanding under two of NCLC’s senior secured credit facilities, together with accrued but unpaid interest thereon, and to pay any related transaction premiums, fees and expenses, with the remainder of the net proceeds from the offerings to be used for general corporate purposes,” NCLH said in a statement.

Windstar Cruises to open Miami office next year

Details: Written by Teijo Niemelä Teijo Niemelä; Category: More News More News; Published: 01 March 2021 01 March 2021

Windstar Cruises has announced it plans to relocate its office from Seattle, Washington to Miami, Florida in June 2022. The small ship cruise line also alerted guests and travel advisors on February 24 that it was pushing back its restart of operations from May to June 2021.

“With time and space away from our Seattle office, we’ve thought about our location and other possibilities once our two year lease is up,” said Windstar Cruises’ President Christopher Prelog. “Although we have all adapted to working remotely with great success, we have been working on a plan for a new office location. A long timeline is needed to facilitate a smooth transition.“

The Miami office will accommodate mostly cruise operation functions and some direct supporting teams to operations. Other functions such as marketing, revenue, accounting and IT will have the opportunity to move to parent company Xanterra’s Denver office to collaborate with team members there. Windstar Cruises is owned by Xanterra Travel Collection, a group of global hospitality and travel companies, based in Denver.

“Windstar is poised for success in the small ship cruise segment,” said Andrew N. Todd, CEO of Windstar Cruises and Xanterra Travel Collection. “Our expert team is nimble and adaptable with many years of experience. We are looking forward to the advantages of a new Miami office, combining teams in Denver and collaborating remotely as we have done this past year.”

Windstar plans to open the new Miami office and transition shared/support services to Denver in June 2022. Windstar expects some employees will choose to work remotely from the Seattle area and others to relocate to Miami or Denver depending on job function.

Prelog says that as the center of the cruise industry in the U.S., a Miami office will be beneficial for building industry relationships and attracting new talent. It will also enable operations employees in Miami to be closer to the line’s ships and crew as they pass through Florida and shorten up flight times to the ships in Europe and the Caribbean.

On Wednesday, February 24, Windstar announced that after carefully assessing multiple factors it was canceling May sailings and would restart operations in June 2021. The decision was made after reviewing current information on Covid transmission rates, travel restrictions and government regulations. The line will re-start cruise operations in a phased manner with initial cruises at a reduced guest occupancy, some modified itineraries, and enhanced health and safety protocols.

New timeline for resumption of operations:
Wind Spirit – June 10, 2021 – Tahiti
Star Breeze – June 19, 2021 – Caribbean
Wind Star – June 19, 2021 – Mediterranean
Wind Surf – June 29, 2021 – Mediterranean
Star Legend – July 4, 2021 – Mediterranean
Star Pride – July 14, 2021 – Northern Europe/Iceland

Royal Caribbean Group to raise $1.5 billion through equity offering

Details: Written by Kari Reinikainen Kari Reinikainen; Category: More News More News; Published: 01 March 2021 01 March 2021

Royal Caribbean Group, the world’s second largest cruise shipping group, said announced that it has commenced an underwritten public offering of $1.5 billion of shares of common stock. The company expects to use the net proceeds from the offering for general corporate purposes.

The previous time the company tapped the markets was in mid-October 2020, when it raised $500 million by offering 2.875% convertible notes.

These can be converted to shares in the company at a price of $60 per share. The notes will mature in 15 November 2023.

Photo: Celebrity Apex of Celebrity Cruises

MSC Cruises to bring MSC Seaside in Mediterranean

Details: Written by Kari Reinikainen Kari Reinikainen; Category: More News More News; Published: 01 March 2021 01 March 2021

MSC Cruises, the Geneva based cruise line, said MSC Seaside will be deployed for the first time to Europe since her launch in 2017, joining the company’s flagship MSC Grandiosa in the Mediterranean from 1 May.

“MSC Seaside will be performing a brand-new itinerary featuring 7-night cruises calling Genoa, Valetta in Malta and Civitavecchia with two first time ports of call – Siracusa in Sicily and Taranto in Puglia,” the company said in a statement.

MSC Grandiosa’s current successful itinerary will be extended through to the end of May with the ship calling at the Italian ports of Genoa, Civitavecchia, Naples, Palermo as well as Valetta in Malta. MSC Grandiosa has been welcoming guests for a holiday at sea from August of last year and has since safely and responsibly carried more than 40,000 guests.

MSC Seaside and MSC Grandiosa itineraries are currently available to residents from Schengen countries and Bulgaria, Croatia, and Romania.

Fincantieri expects to deliver seven cruise ships 2021

Details: Written by Kari Reinikainen Kari Reinikainen; Category: More News More News; Published: 01 March 2021 01 March 2021

Fincantieri, the Italian shipbuilder that is the largest builder of cruise ships, said it expects to return to the pre-COVID-19 growth levels by 2021 and to deliver a total of seven cruise ships this year.

This year’s revenues are expected to increase by 25% to 30% compared to €5.88 billion recorded in 2020, excluding pass-through activities, with a consequent improvement in margins, which should come close to 7% and so confirming the growth guidelines outlined by the group before the pandemic.

“Such results may led to a return of a sustainable dividends distribution starting as soon as 2022,” the company said in a statement.

In the cruise ships business area, during 2021, five ships are scheduled to be delivered from the Italian shipyards - Silver Dawn (for Silversea Cruises), Viking Venus (Viking Ocean Cruises) , Rotterdam (Holland America Line) , MSC Seashore (MSC Cruises) and Valiant Lady (Virgin Voyages). In addition to two expedition cruise vessels would be delivered by Vard in Norway - one for Ponant in France and one for Hapag-Lloyd in Germany.

“Actions to support the increase in volumes have already been planned: on the one hand, completion of capex for the upgrading of the Marghera and Monfalcone shipyards, and, on the other hand, an increasingly greater integration of all the shipyards dedicated to cruise shipbuilding (Italy and Romania),” the company said.

"Cruise ship deliveries stayed on schedule as per the pre-pandemic program, even with the postponement of production programs: four out of the seven cruise ships delivered in 2020 were handed over in the second half of the year, amid the pandemic, including the 100^th cruise ship built by Fincantieri, for Princess Cruises, a Carnival Group brand," the company said.