Carnival Corp. Launching 4 New Cruise Ships

By Mark Edward Nero

To meet rising demand for cruise vacations, four of Carnival Corp.’s 10 brands are expected to add new ships in 2016, the company announced Jan. 6. The additions are part of the 17 ships scheduled for delivery for Carnival brand companies through 2020.

The four new ships scheduled to join Carnival Corp.’s fleet of 99 ships in 2016 are:

• Holland America Line’s ms Koningsdam, with delivery expected in April 2016. The 99,500-gt Koningsdam is currently under construction at Fincantieri's Marghera shipyard in Italy.
• Carnival Cruise Line’s Carnival Vista, with delivery expected in April 2016. The largest ship in the Carnival fleet, Carnival Vista will measure 133,500 tons, 1,055 feet long and have a guest capacity of 3,954. Carnival Vista is scheduled to enter service on May 1, initially sailing from Europe and repositioning to Miami in November to launch year-round Caribbean service.
• AIDA Cruises’ AIDAprima. Official delivery date expected in April 2016. The AIDAprima will be the newest flagship for AIDA Cruises, with 1,643 cabins at 124,100 gross tons.
• Seabourn Cruise Line’s Seabourn Encore. Official delivery date expected is in December 2016 for the Seabourn Encore. The 40,350-gross ton ship is being configured with one additional deck and new expanded public areas, and is expected to carry up to 600 guests, based on double occupancy.

Holland America, Crowley Pick Up Top Green Awards from Seattle Port, Propeller Club

Holland America and Crowley Maritime Corporation have received the top two awards for environmentally friendly businesses from the Port of the Seattle and Seattle Propeller Club.

The 2010 Marine Environmental Business of the Year award was presented during the 59th Annual Maritime Festival Luncheon in Seattle, with Holland America taking top honors and Crowley being named runner-up.

The luncheon, which attracted more than 500 attendees, was one of the spotlight events of the City of Seattle's annual Maritime Festival.

Holland America and Crowley led a pack of nine companies to be nominated for the annual award.

"We applaud and congratulate Holland America Line in winning the 2010 Marine Environmental Business of the Year Award," said Port of Seattle CEO Tay Yoshitani.

"Their efforts at using shore power while at berth in Seattle contribute greatly to our Puget Sound Clean Air Strategy and help make Northwest ports the Green Gateway."

Yoshitani cited the passenger carrier's effort in 2009, through a combination of fuel conservation and shore power use, that resulted in the three Holland America Line ships based at the Port of Seattle eliminating nearly 2,615 tons of diesel engine emissions annually. Along with air pollution reduction, Holland America Line did not discharge wastewater into Puget Sound during the 2009 Alaska cruise season.

“We are honored to receive this award and thank the Port of Seattle for recognizing our efforts in environmental stewardship,” said Stein Kruse, president and chief executive officer. “Being selected for this award is a testament to our ongoing commitment to preserving the environment both locally and around the world."

Scott Hoggarth, Crowley general manager, ship assist and escort services, accepted the runner-up award on behalf of Crowley.

"We are honored to receive this recognition for our past and ongoing environmental stewardship efforts," said Hoggarth. "From our many vessel emission reduction projects to our recycling and green initiatives shore side, the effort to improve the environment is truly a Crowley company wide endeavor."

Recent examples of Crowley's environmental efforts include: certification to the international standard ISO 14001 Environmental Management System; certification of all eight of the Articulated Tug Barge 650 Series barges by Lloyds Register Group under its Green Passport program, and the repowering of the firm's Southern California harbor tugs to meet Tier II emission standards three years ahead of government requirements.