Meyer Werft has successfully floated out its latest newbuilding, the “Silver Ray”. She will be delivered to the customer in early summer.
One day later than originally planned, Meyer Werft’s latest cruise ship newbuilding, the “SilverRay“, was floated out in Papenburg on Sunday morning. Due to strong winds, the shipyard had postponed the operation by one day. [ds_preview]
Even before the actual manoeuvre took place, an engine room section for the newbuilding “Asuka II” for the Japanese shipping company NYK Cruises had been hauled out of the hall. This component had to make way for the “Silver Ray”. The engine room section will then be floated into the free building dock I.
The almost 245 m long cruise ship with a dimension of 54,700 GT, on which a 10 m high LNG mast had to be placed during undocking, was moved to the shipyard port. The first tests on the bow thrusters and stabilizers have already been carried out. The white smokestack is also to be installed with the help of a mobile crane. The height of the hall was not sufficient for this.
“Silver Ray” to cross the Ems in early April
According to current plans, the ship is to be transferred across the Ems towards the North Sea at the beginning of April. Once the necessary nautical and technical sea trials have been completed, the sister ship to the “Silver Nova”, which was delivered last year, will be delivered to Silversea Cruises in early summer.
On 15 June, the “Silver Ray” is scheduled to begin her first voyage from Lisbon. A butler service in every suite category and exquisite restaurants await a maximum of 728 guests on board the new ultra-luxury ship.
The two newbuildings are characterized for the first time by an asymmetrical design and a groundbreaking hydrodynamic ship design. A Micro Auto Gasification System has also been installed, which reduces the volume of waste on board and thus leads to lower combustion emissions.
In addition, this class of ship achieves an Energy Efficiency Design Index (EEDI) that is reportedly around 25% higher than the applicable requirements of the International Maritime Organization (IMO). Gas (LNG) is planned as the fuel, as well as a fuel cell. The shore power supply will enable the ship to switch off its main generators in selected ports.
The luxury shipping company Silverseas Cruises was founded in Monaco in the early 1990s and started with a single ship, the 300-passenger “Silver Cloud”. The shipping company gradually increased the number and volume of its ships. The fleet currently comprises eleven units. In 2018, the company, which had previously been owned by the Lefebvre family, was sold to the US company Royal Caribbean Cruises. (CE)
