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Ponant aims next ship to have no impact on environment

Details: Written by Kari Reinikainen Kari Reinikainen; Category: More News More News; Published: 03 August 2022 03 August 2022

Ponant, the French expedition cruise company, said its next vessel, the number 14 in its fleet, should have no impact on the environment .“After last year’s launch of Le Commandant Charcot, the world’s only luxury icebreaker, hybrid electric powered by liquefied natural gas (LNG), the R&D team at Ponant is working on an eco-design cruise ship that will have no impact on the environment when sailing,” the company said in a statement.

“For several months now we’ve been working on a new whole life cycle concept ship to reduce her ecological footprint. We’re assessing all the potential impacts: discharges into the atmosphere and water, microplastics, noise levels, and social and human impacts. As with Le Commandant Charcot, she will also be available to scientists. A total new generation ship needs to be designed and we intend to deliver it,” said Mathieu Petiteau, New Building and R&D Director at Poignant.

The new ship’s technical and commercial criteria have been established in consultation with all relevant departments. The aim is to deliver a ship that can combine several non-fossil fuel energy sources, including wind propulsion, by integrating technological bricks. The scope of work should be ready by end of 2022, with the preliminary plans then produced and technical specifications drawn up for a call for tenders. The goal is to have the ship up and running by 2025.

PONANT ramps up R&D to drive the ecological and energy transition

This 14th ship project is in line with Ponant’s six environmental commitments, one being to reduce its greenhouse gas emissions by 30% by 2030. After the launch of Le Commandant Charcot, the company continues striving to minimise its ships carbon footprint. The R&D team’s mission is to identify and assess options most likely to accelerate the ecological and energy transition across the whole fleet.

In terms of energy efficiency and optimisation, structural modifications to ships and protecting ecosystems, there are many avenues to explore and progress. New generation biofuels are being assessed, like green hydrogen, as well as the possibilities for wind and water propulsion. Ponant is working with other industries and contributing to various European research projects to develop and test these technologies.

“As a company committed to more responsible tourism and meaningful exploration voyages for over 30 years, Poignant puts R&D at the core of its growth strategy to meet both the ecological challenges and demands of its customers and offer them new inspiring experiences,” the company said.

Photo: Le Commandant Charcot

Norwegian Viva floated out at Marghera

Details: Written by Kari Reinikainen Kari Reinikainen; Category: More News More News; Published: 03 August 2022 03 August 2022

Norwegian Viva, the second of six Prima class newbuildings for Norwegian Cruise Line, has been floated out at the Marghera shipyard of Fincantieri.

“The Prima Class is based on a prototype project developed by Fincantieri, which enhances the consolidated features of NCL’s signature offering of freedom and flexibility, qualified by an innovative configuration for an elevated passenger experience. In addition, focus was set on energy efficiency, with the twofold aim of optimising consumption at sea and reducing environmental impact, compliant with all the most recent regulations on this matter,” Fincantieri said in a statement.

Norwegian Prima, the first unit of the 142,500 gross ton, was delivered on 29 July. The ships have accommodation for 3,215 passengers.

NCL takes delivery of Norwegian Prima

Details: Written by Kari Reinikainen Kari Reinikainen; Category: More News More News; Published: 29 July 2022 29 July 2022

Norwegian Cruise Line (NCL) that NCL is part of Norwegian Cruise Line Holdings Ltd. in Miami, has taken delivery of the 142,500gross ton Norwegian Prima at Fincantieri’s shipyard at Marghera near Venice.

It is the first in a series of six Prima class shops that will form the backbone of the future NCL fleet. Deliveries of the class that has accommodation for 3,215 guests are scheduled through 2027.

“In addition, focus was set on energy efficiency, with the twofold aim of optimising consumption at sea and reducing environmental impact, compliant with all the most recent regulations on this matter,” Fincantieri said.

From left: Fincantieri's Luigi Matarazzo and NCL's Harry Sommer

Royal Caribbean Group expects third quarter profit, second half loss

Details: Written by Kari Reinikainen Kari Reinikainen; Category: More News More News; Published: 28 July 2022 28 July 2022

Royal Caribbean Group, the world’s second largest cruise shipping group, said it expected a net loss in the second half of the year, but the third quarter should produce a small profit.

The second half next loss expectation is based on increases in fuel rates, interest rates and foreign exchange rates. “Based on current currency exchange rates, fuel rates and interest rates, the Group expects Adjusted Earnings Per Share for the third quarter of $0.05 - $0.25,” the company said in a statement. It did not quantify the expected second half loss.

The company expects to operate 11.6 million available passenger capacity days (APCDs) in the third quarter and generate approximately $2.9 billion - $3.0 billion in total revenue, based on current currency exchange rates.

The company does not forecast fuel rates, and fuel cost calculations are based on current at-the-pump prices, net of hedging impacts. Based on current fuel rates, the company expects approximately $319 million of fuel expense in the third quarter 2022, at an average pricing of $794 per metric ton, net of hedging.

Based on current currency exchange rates and fuel rates, the company expects Adjusted EBITDA of $700 million - $750 million in the third quarter.

Depreciation and amortisation expenses for the third quarter of 2022 are expected to be approximately $360 million.

Net interest expense for the third quarter of 2022, based on current interest rates, is expected to be in the range of $310 million - $320 million. Approximately 70% of the company's debt is tied to fixed interest rates.

Booking volumes received in the second quarter for 2022 sailings averaged 30% above 2019 booking volumes for 2019 sailings in the corresponding period in the second quarter with even greater strength in July.

Guests are still booking their cruises closer-in compared to prior years, contributing to the better-than-expected load factors in the second quarter. In addition, cancellation activity has now returned to pre-covid levels.

As expected, load factors for sailings in the second half of 2022 remain below historical levels and are expected to finish at approximately 95% in the third quarter and reach triple digits by the end of the year. Second half 2022 sailings are booked at higher prices than 2019, both including and excluding future cruise credits (FCCs).

While demand for the critical Europe season has been strong over the past three months, the combination of Covid-19 and the Russia-Ukraine war, has set back load factor recovery, particularly for the third quarter of 2022, where European itineraries account for about a third of overall capacity.

Because European itineraries generate higher than average pricing, the lower load factors are expected to negatively impact the comparison of fleetwide revenue per passenger cruise day in the third quarter when compared to the third quarter of 2019.

Booking volumes for 2023 have shown consistent improvement week over week and have been accelerating over the last several weeks. Pre-cruise onboard purchases continue to exceed prior years at higher prices, indicating quality and healthy future demand. As a result, all quarters are currently booked within historical ranges at record pricing.

Royal Caribbean Group cuts second quarter losses as load factor hit 82%

Details: Written by Kari Reinikainen Kari Reinikainen; Category: More News More News; Published: 28 July 2022 28 July 2022

Royal Caribbean Group, the world’s second largest cruise shipping company, has significantly reduced its losses in the second quarter as load factor hit 82% in the review period, the company said in a statement.

Second quarter operating loss narrowed to $218.6 million from a loss of $1.02 billion in the same period last year, while net loss narrowed to $521.6 million from $1.35 billion.

“Second quarter results exceeded the company's expectations driven by better revenue and cost performance. Second quarter load factors were 82%. Load factors increased to almost 90% in June, with Caribbean itineraries averaging over 100%,” the company said.

Total revenues per passenger cruise day were at record levels and up 4% as reported and 5% in constant currency versus the second quarter of 2019.

Gross Cruise Costs per available passenger capacity day (APCD) improved 2.4% as reported and 1.9% in constant currency, compared to the first quarter 2022. Net Cruise Costs (NCC), excluding fuel, per APCD improved 16.5% as reported and 16.2% in constant currency, compared to the first quarter of 2022.

Gross Cruise Costs per APCD and NCC per APCD for the second quarter included $7.75 per APCD related to enhanced health protocols and one-time costs to return ships and crew back to operations.

Customer deposits hit record high of $2 billion

As of June 30, 2022, the Group's customer deposit balance was $4.2 billion, a record high for the company. “This represents an increase of about $600 million over the previous quarter despite the significant quarter-over-quarter increase in revenue recognition,” the company said.

In the second quarter, approximately 90% of total bookings were new versus future cruise credit (FCC) redemptions. Now that the full fleet has returned to service and load factors are nearly 90%, the company expects customer deposits to return to typical seasonality.

Approximately 20% of the customer deposit balance as of the end of the second quarter is related to FCCs and about 60% of the FCC balance accumulated since the start of the pandemic has been redeemed. Of the redeemed FCCs, about half have already sailed resulting in revenue being recognized. For new bookings, the Group has returned to typical booking and cancellation policies, which were relaxed during the pandemic.

Liabilities of the group totaled at $30.55 billion at the end of the quarter, an increase from $27.17 billion year-on.