MSC Cruises has signed an order for two new ships that will become the biggest ever built by a European company.
The letter of intent penned with STX France will see the French shipyard construct the two brand new vessels for MSC, expanding the cruise line’s total fleet size to 12 ships. The company also has the option of ordering two extra ships.
“Growth and development have always been the characteristics that have defined MSC since the very beginning of our journey into the world of cruising,” said MSC’s executive chairman, Pierfrancesco Vago.
“The launch of this prototype and the building of these two new ships confirm our commitment to further growth and to further development. MSC Cruises will expand its capacity by 31%: we will incredibly enrich our offerings on board and will broaden our horizons to ensure we meet the growing global demand in every region,” he added.
According to MSC, the prototype vessel will be “the biggest cruise ship ever built by a European ship owner”.
The two new ships will offer a range of onboard facilities, including entertainment and dining venues “with new panoramic spaces”, larger theatres and amusement parks connected to an outdoor water parks. There will also be a new range of family cabins and an extended MSC Yacht Club, which will come equipped with a large solarium, private lounge and restaurant and duplex suites.
“We are really proud of building this new generation of ships for MSC Cruises, a long-time appreciated partner. We invested a lot of R&D and design efforts to make sure that MSC Cruises’ new flagship would truly be unmatched,” said Laurent Castaing, STX France’s general manager.
The two new ships are due for delivery in 2017 and 2019. They will both measure 315 metres long and 43 metres wide, and weigh approximately 167,600 tonnes, making them larger than Cunard’s Queen Mary 2 and the brand new Norwegian Getaway. They will also be bigger than MSC’s current largest vessels, the 139,400-tonne MSC Divina and MSC Preziosa. The ships will offer 2,250 cabins, accommodating 5,700 passengers.
The value of the contract was not revealed, but it is said to be worth 16 million working hours for STX France. Building is due to start in spring 2015.
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