Tag Archives: Costa Group

Costa and AIDA Eye Methanol With New Agreement

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Costa Group and the leading methanol producer, Proman, have signed an MOU to drive further the implementation of methanol as a marine fuel for the cruise industry, according to a press release.

The partnership aims to accelerate the energy transition and decarbonization of the existing fleet for Costa and AIDA by enhancing the supply of sustainable methanol, paving the way for the retrofitting of existing vessels to operate on clean fuel, as well as investment in further methanol-fueled new builds.

“The technology to retrofit a vessel to accept methanol as a fuel is available today. Our methanol products can facilitate the transition to low-carbon intensity fuels. Methanol-powered vessels have a proven track record of reducing and eliminating major greenhouse gas emissions, delivering immediate air quality improvements around major ports and shipping lanes. We are excited to bring our expertise along the full methanol value chain to help deliver on Costa Group’s bold ambitions,” said Tim Cornelius, Proman’s Managing Director of Corporate Development.

“We are reducing the carbon footprint of our fleet while at the port and at sea, investing in advanced environmental technologies and partnering with companies such as Proman who share a passion for the sustainable energy transition. By enabling cruise ships to use methanol as a propulsion fuel, Costa follows the ambition to take the next big step towards GHG-neutral operations of our fleet by 2050,” added Dr Christoph Schladoer, VP of Decarbonization Costa Group.

Costa trials onboard robots

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Pepper robots are being used on board Costa and Aida cruise ships

Costa Group has signed an exclusive agreement with French company Aldebaran to use its Pepper robots on board vessels to assist passengers on Costa and Aida cruise ships. Pepper is the world’s first robot that reads main human emotions.

Michael Thamm, chief executive of the Costa Group, said: “With an emotional robot on board our cruise ships we are once again continuing our tradition of innovation. For us, this is an important step towards a digital future for our brands.”

Pepper has successfully completed a trial on board AIDAstella. The first batch of Peppers will join the crew and start helping on board AIDAprima and Costa Diadema in spring 2016, guiding guests when they embark and while on board. They will also be on hand to provide recommendations and tips on restaurants, events and excursions. They can communicate in German, Italian and English. By summer of 2016 the rest of the robots will be joining the crew aboard the Costa and Aida fleets.

Pepper was developed in Japan and is the first humanoid robot capable of recognising the main emotions and to take his environment into account and proactively act accordingly. Pepper is well equipped with features and a high-level interface for communicating with those around him, to move fluidly and analyse expressions and voice tones using the latest advances in voice and emotion recognition.

The robot measures 120cm tall and weighs 28kg. Its movement is provided by three omnidirectional wheels while a 3D camera detects people and their movements and it has a 10 inch touch screen.

Carnival Corp. CEO was paid $8.7 million last year

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Carnival Corp. president and CEO Arnold Donald received $8.7 million in compensation last year, an increase of 11% from 2013.

The cruise company’s 2014 net income rose 14.4% in 2014. Carnival’s stock price rose 12.8% over the year.

Donald earned a salary of $1 million, plus stock compensation worth $3.5 million, non-equity compensation plan remuneration of $3.9 million and $291,000 of other compensation, including private use of the corporate jet.

The five mostly highly paid executives at CarnivalCorp.  earned a combined $32.7 million, including $6.5 million for Costa Group CEO Michael Thamm, $6.1 million for departed Carnival Cruise Lines president and CEO Gerry Cahill, $6.1 million for chief operations officer Alan Buckelew, and $5.2 million for CFO David Bernstein.

The information is contained in a statement filed with U.S. financial regulators in advance of the annual shareholders meeting, which is set for April 14 in London.