Carnival doubles cull of inefficient ships
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- Written by Kari Reinikainen Kari Reinikainen
- Category: Top Headlines Top Headlines
- Published: 15 September 2020 15 September 2020
Carnival Corporation & plc, the Anglo-American cruise shipping group, said it would axe 18 ships from its fleet in a drive to boost efficiency, twice the figure it had intended to axe after the Covid-19 pandemic had emerged as a major concern for the cruise industry.
“The company now expects to dispose of 18 ships, eight of which have already left the fleet. In total, the 18 ships represent approximately 12% of pre-pause capacity and only three percent of operating income in 2019. The sale of less efficient ships will result in future operating expense efficiencies of approximately two percent per available lower berth day ("ALBD") and a reduction in fuel consumption of approximately one percent per ALBD,” the company said in a statement.
Carnival said it expects future capacity to be moderated by the phased re-entry of its ships, the removal of capacity from its fleet and delays in new ship deliveries. “Since the pause in guest operations, the company has accelerated the removal of ships in fiscal 2020 which were previously expected to be sold over the ensuing years,” it said.
Carnival group expects only two of the four ships originally scheduled for delivery in 2020, following the start of the pause, to be delivered prior to the end of fiscal 2020. These are presumably Iona of P&O Cruises and Costa Venezia of Costa Crociere, although Carnival did not state this.
Carnival currently expects only five of the nine ships originally scheduled for delivery in fiscal 2020 and 2021 to be delivered prior to the end of fiscal year 2021. The company currently expects nine cruise ships and two smaller expedition ships of the 13 ships originally scheduled for delivery prior to the end of fiscal year 2022 to be delivered by then
Based on the actions taken to date and the scheduled newbuild deliveries through 2022, the company's fleet will be more efficient with a roughly 13% larger average berth size and an average age of 12 years in 2022 versus 13 years, in each case as compared to 2019,” it said.
Carnival Corporation & plc reports deep third quarter loss, 55% of cancellations require cash refunds
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- Written by Kari Reinikainen Kari Reinikainen
- Category: Top Headlines Top Headlines
- Published: 15 September 2020 15 September 2020
Carnival Corporation & plc, the world’s largest cruise shipping group, has reported a deep loss for the third quarter of its financial year and said that 55% of the passengers whose cruises had been canceled have requested cash refunds, the company said in a statement.
Net loss to three months to 31 August amounted to $2.9 billion, which included a $0.9 billion impairment charge that is a non- cash item.
Cash and cash equivalent items amounted to $8.2 billion at the end of August. Customer deposits declined to $2.4 billion from $2.9 billion at the end of May, which the company said it had expected. “As of August 31, 2020, the current portion of customer deposits was $2.1 billion with $0.1 billion relating to fourth quarter sailings. Approximately 55% of bookings taken during the quarter ending August 31, 2020 were new bookings, as opposed to FCC re-bookings, despite minimal advertising or marketing,’ Carnival said.
“While the company believes bookings in the first half of 2021 reflect expectations of the phased resumption of its guest cruise operations and anticipated itinerary changes, as of August 31, 2020, cumulative advanced bookings for the second half of 2021 capacity currently available for sale are at the higher end of the historical range and similar to where booking positions were in 2018 for the second half of 2019,” Carnival said.
Royal Caribbean Group extends government relations expertise with new SVP Corporate Affairs
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- Written by Teijo Niemelä Teijo Niemelä
- Category: Top Headlines Top Headlines
- Published: 11 September 2020 11 September 2020
Donna Hrinak is joining Royal Caribbean Group as Senior Vice President of Corporate Affairs. Hrinak, former Corporate Vice President, The Boeing Company and President, Boeing Canada, Latin America & Caribbean, will lead the Group's government relations, communications and public relations functions. She brings a stellar curriculum vitae in global regulatory policy, multicultural negotiations, coalition leadership and international business transformation to augment the Group's industry leading government affairs team.
"As a global company touching every continent," said Richard D. Fain, Royal Caribbean Group chairman and CEO, "we are used to making our way in a complicated world. But these last few months have reminded us, more than ever, just how challenging that world is. Donna will provide her decades of experience in navigating the complexities of regulatory and cultural ecosystems to enable us to continue to build and maintain strong, collaborative relationships with countries and organizations everywhere we operate."
Reporting directly to Fain, Hrinak will provide informed counsel and facilitate productive communication among a broad array of stakeholders, including port authorities, coastal community leadership, government representatives, environmental advocates, scientific and marine leaders and more.
"I am honored and delighted to join Royal Caribbean Group, with such deep roots in the communities it serves," said Hrinak. "As with other industries I've represented, thoughtful and respectful travel promotes economic development, multicultural understanding and global perspective for all entities involved. I look forward to assisting Royal Caribbean Group strengthen its business position throughout the world."
Hrinak has designed and led strategies to confront an increasingly complicated global regulatory environment and guided executives in evaluating the business, political and economic risks involved in global operations. She has worked closely and collaboratively with a broad range of international coalitions and agencies, including the World Health Organization. Prior to Boeing, Hrinak held executive positions in global, Latin American and European public affairs at PepsiCo and at Kraft Foods. In addition, she served as United States Ambassador to Brazil, Venezuela, Bolivia and the Dominican Republic during the Clinton and George W. Bush administrations, where she architected new strategies to promote U.S. interests, led bilateral trade relationships, won broad-based support for U.S. positions and protected the rights of U.S. citizens by fostering transparency and judicial security.
Hrinak joined the Group on August 24.
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