Costa Cruises, Carnival Corporation’s Italy-based brand, has ordered construction of two next-generation cruise ships.
The two ships will be built by Meyer shipyard in Turku, Finland, with delivery scheduled for 2019 and 2020.
According to Coast Cruises, each of the ships will exceed 180,000 gross tonnage, offering more than 2,600 passenger cabins for a total of 6,600 passengers on board, the largest guest capacity in the world.
They will feature a revolutionary “green design” as they will be powered at sea by Liquefied Natural Gas (LNG).
LNG will be stored on board the ships and used to generate 100 percent power at sea – producing another industry-first innovation for Costa. Using LNG to power the ships in port and at sea will significantly reduce exhaust emissions to help protect the environment and support the company’s aggressive sustainability goals.
Costa order is part of a multibillion dollar contract with two Meyer shipyards in Turku, Finland and Papenburg, Germany, including also two new ships for Aida Cruises.
The contract with Meyer is the result of a larger previously announced memo of understanding between Carnival Corporation & plc and shipbuilders Meyer Werft, Meyer Turku and Fincantieri S.p.A. for nine new ships between 2019 and 2022.
According to Michael Thamm, CEO of the Costa Group, the multibillion dollar contract with Meyer “mirrors our strategy to constantly innovate our vacation offers and to deliver unmatched cruise experience to our guests.”
“ We are building the ships with a strong team in Turku and with the support of mostly European suppliers, who are the best in their field. Among those leading suppliers, there are also a number of Italian companies, which we have worked well with in Finland as well as in Germany. We are aiming to continue this successful legacy,” said Jan Meyer CEO of Meyer Turku Oy .