Tag Archives: MSC Seaside

MSC TO BUILD FOUR 1,000 GUEST LUXURY CRUISE SHIPS

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MSC Seaview in Valletta, Malta
MSC Cruises is continuing its impressive growth in the cruise industry as the company today announced an agreement to build four ultra-luxury cruise ships at Fincantieri.
The 1,000-guest, 64,000-ton ships will enter service in 2023, 2024, 2025 and 2026. The memorandum of agreement is for a total value in excess of two million euro, MSC said and marks the company’s first dedicated luxury ships.
Pierfrancesco Vago, MSC Cruises’ Executive Chairman, said: “It is off the back of the great success of our ship-within-a-ship luxury concept that our guests asked us to enter into the ultra-luxury segment, as a natural evolution of the MSC Yacht Club. These ships will be able to offer unique itineraries, thanks to their size, and the guest services will be taken to another level, including our personalized MSC Yacht Club butler service, available 24/7.”
By 2027, MSC will have 25 mega ships in service, up from 15 today. The additional four ships will put the MSC fleet at 29 ships by 2027 with over 98,000 berths and a market capacity of over 5 million guests annually, according to Cruise Industry News estimates.
“I am especially pleased to be able to further extend our partnership with Fincantieri through this new order. The award-winning Seaside and Seaside-Evo class have already been recognized as ground-breaking and innovative designs. We are now introducing another new class, which will establish a new standard of ultra-luxury at sea with ships that will showcase the quality and highest standards that are associated with Made in Italy,” Vago said.
Giuseppe Bono, CEO of Fincantieri, stated: “It is with pride that two great brands – an Italian one and one with a strong Italian DNA -, well-known all over the world, today announce an important construction program. We are extremely satisfied that to launch a new class of ships in the luxury segment, MSC Cruises has acknowledged that our project will allow creating a new generation of cutting-edge units from both a technological point of view, safety and with particular attention paid to passenger comfort. With this project Fincantieri can count on 53 cruise ships in its order book, confirming to be an absolute market leader in all the cruise shipbuilding segments.”

New Cruise Terminal at PortMiami for MSC Cruises

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MSC Divina in her Homeport of Miami.
MSC Cruises has signed a Memorandum of Understanding (MOU) for the construction of a new Cruise Terminal AAA at PortMiami. The expected completion date is 2022.

The new terminal will accommodate the line’s World Class of ships, which will carry up to 7,000 passengers. MSC Cruises will operate four ships in total from Miami, including MSC Seaside. That ship debuted in late 2017. It currently sails year-round from Miami to the Caribbean.

MSC Armonia will begin homeporting in Miami in December 2018. She’ll offer the line’s first cruises to Cuba from the US. Additionally, MSC Divina will return seasonally to PortMiami. She sails to the Caribbean from October through March. And, MSC Meraviglia will make her North American debut at PortMiami in November 2019. The line’s largest ship, Meraviglia carries 5,714 passengers.

“The new agreement and expanded partnership with PortMiami and Miami-Dade County is another key step forward in the business growth of MSC Cruises, as we continue to strengthen our global footprint, with a strategic focus on North America,” said Pierfrancesco Vago, executive chairman of MSC Cruises.

Rick Sasso, chairman of MSC Cruises USA emphasized the mutual economic benefit of the new terminal.

“PortMiami is committed to providing a world-class experience to its guests and thanks to a long-standing collaborative relationship with Miami-Dade County we are thrilled that in less than 18 months MSC Cruises will have four ships sailing from the Port. This will also allow us to make a significant additional contribution to the economy of Miami and the county in its role as the Capital of the Cruise World, especially thanks to the large percentage of international guests travelling to Miami and South Florida to embark and disembark from MSC Cruises ships calling PortMiami,” said Sasso.

MSC Cruises currently operates 15 ships. The line plans to expand to expand to 25 mega-cruise ships by 2026.

MSC Cruises to Install Ocean Guardian Software

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MSC Seaview in Barcelona

Total Marine Solutions and MSC Cruises today announced a global collaboration following successful software trials of Ocean Guardian, which is a software system that lets ship operators access the latest environmental regulations.

By the end of July 2018, all MSC Cruises ships will be equipped with Ocean Guardian.

While the most widely applied environmental regulations are specified in the International Convention for Prevention from Pollution from Ships and its Annexes (MARPOL), many countries across the globe apply their own rules in waters within their jurisdiction, MSC said, in a prepared statement.

These local regulations are modified frequently, making it difficult for ship operators to stay abreast of the most up-to-date rules and guidance. While MSC Cruises’ policy prescribes to always follow the most stringent local or international regulations, Ocean Guardian simplifies the process and ensures accuracy regarding the applicability of international, national, or regional environmental regulations.

“MSC Cruises has been a collaborative partner in developing this technology during sea trials,” said Alexandra Anagnostis-Irons, President of Total Marine Solutions. “Therefore, we are especially excited to  deploy Ocean Guardian’s state-of-the-art technology on all MSC Cruises’ ships.”

“As maritime regulations continue to become more complex, and as part of a much broader approach to meet our own environmental objectives, MSC Cruises along with the entire cruise industry continually invests in technology to better manage our environmental footprint,” added Bud Darr, Executive Vice President for Maritime Policy and Government Affairs, MSC Group. “Compliance and knowledge are critical aspects of this and Ocean Guardian will be instrumental to accurately navigate the complex web of environmental regulations at sea.”

The database that supports the technology is updated by experienced marine professionals on an ongoing basis, and verified and vetted by a third-party independent maritime law firm to provide accurate information, the company said.

As a result, the new system will eliminate the need to continuously review the various handbooks, guides and environmental matrices to determine which regulations apply.

On the MSC Cruises fleet, the Ocean Guardian technology is located on the bridge, in the engine control room and in the MSC Maritime Support Center in London, where it is monitored 24/7. The software produces a sound when certain parameters are within range, alerting deck officers on duty.

MSC Cruises and Total Marine Solutions conducted successful trials with Ocean Guardian on MSC Divina, while at sea in the Caribbean and will be deploying the technology across the entire fleet.