The Genting Group, parent company of NCL, Crystal and Star Cruises, announced they have reached an agreement with their subsidiary yard in Germany, Lloyd Werft, for the construction of two ships for Star Cruises. Delivery is set to be 2019 and 2020.
Now here’s where it gets interesting. The ships are said to be 201,000gt making them among the largest. Only the Oasis class would be larger. MSC’s recently announced World Class will be only 200,000gt. Of course all this tonnage can change when the designs are finalized.
Lloyd Werft in Bremerhaven, Germany doesn’t have a yard big enough for a ship that size. The press release, embedded below, also makes mention of the Lloyd Werft Group. This is a consortium, of sorts, consisting of yards throughout Europe. Could the ship be constructed in different locations and assembled in another drydock somewhere else? It could be, but it’s too early to tell.
press release via Genting Hong Kong:
In a signing ceremony attended by Mr. Uwe Beckmeyer, State Secretary of Maritime Affairs, Mr. Erwin Sellering, Prime Minister of the State Mecklenburg-Vorpommern and Mr. Martin Günthner, Senator for Economics and Port Affairs of Free Hanseatic City of Bremen, Tan Sri Lim Kok Thay, Chairman of Genting Hong, signed an order for ten ships with the Lloyd Werft Group, comprising of two mega cruise ships for Star Cruises and eight vessels for Crystal Cruises.
Star Cruises has designed the “Global Class” of ships for worldwide cruising, each measuring 201,000 gross tons
with 5,000 lower berths. Delivery of the “Global Class” series of ships will commence between 2019 and 2020
starting with one ship a year and eventually increasing to two ships a year. The first two ships ordered in the
“Global Class” series are designed with “Chinese Characteristics” and they will be the first purpose built cruise
ships deployed for the contemporary Chinese market.
“Passengers on our “Global Class” ships will enjoy an international class cruise experience to all parts of the
world, yet in an environment where they will feel at home, whether it is food, culture, shows, enrichment
programs or excursions,” says Tan Sri Lim Kok Thay. “With the first two ships, we are focused on delivering a
world-class vacation experience for Chinese cruise passengers at an affordable price whilst enjoying fun-filled
onboard and on-land adventures in many cities in the most seamless way, without the necessity of checking-in
and checking-out of airports and hotels.”
Genting Hong Kong pioneered year-round cruising in Asia 23 years ago with Star Cruises and found further
success with the acquisition of Norwegian Cruise Line 16 years ago – rejuvenating and growing the line to be the
third largest and most profitable cruise line on a per berth basis in the United States. “Now it is time to come
home and rebuild Star Cruises with a fleet of brand-new vessels which will transform Star Cruises to be the
youngest, largest and most innovative cruise line in Asia and reclaim our leadership position with our “Global
Class” series of quality-built mega cruise ships,” added Tan Sri KT Lim during the signing ceremony in Wismar,
Germany.