Will Aida Cruises soon have two newbuildings? And would they be built by Fincantieri in Italy instead of Meyer Werft in Papenburg? The rumour mill is churning …
Various media outlets in Italy believe that Carnival, the world’s largest cruise line, is in the running for a major order. The Italian shipyard group Fincantieri is said to have the best chances in the race for the lucrative order. However, Meyer Werft is apparently also still in the running.
According to the report, Carnival is looking to order a total of six to eight newbuildings for various divisions. This is reported by the internet portal Shipping Italy, among others. These are said to be newbuilds with a dimension of more than 150,000 GT, which are intended for the Carnival Cruise Line brands, but also for Aida Cruises and possibly also for Costa Cruises, and are to be delivered in stages from 2029. There is also said to be an option for two further newbuildings, which could benefit the British shipping company P&O Cruises.
Is Carnival ordering from Fincantieri?
These cruise ships could be built at the Fincantieri shipyards in Marghera near Venice or Sestri Ponente near Genoa. The order value for the six ships initially planned is said to be around US$8bn.
Should the Rostock-based shipping company Aida also receive new ships, they would be somewhat smaller than the two LNG ships “Aida Nova” and “Aida Cosma” recently built by Meyer Werft, each with 183,858 GT, although larger than the Japanese-built “Aida Prima” and “Aida Perla” (125,000 GT).
Aida Cruises’ only excursion abroad to date, to Mitsubishi in Japan, had turned out to be an expensive misunderstanding. The ships were delivered well behind schedule and with painful losses for the shipyard.
Aida Cruises speaks of “growth plans”
The Rostock-based shipping company has not commented on the rumours. They are working on “growth plans”, they simply say. However, Josh Weinstein, CEO of Carnival, had already hinted at further newbuildings at the end of July, but without specifically naming a shipyard or giving details of the projects.
Both Aida and its Italian sister company, Costa Cruises, have not ordered any newbuilds for around ten years. Costa last received the “Costa Toscana” built by Meyer Turku in 2021. Aida Cruises was originally due to receive a third newbuild from Meyer Werft’s Helios series last year, but the project was redesigned for the US market during the coronavirus pandemic and is to be launched as the “Carnival Jubilee”.
