Construction on the LNG tanks, each of which is reported to be 307 tons and 90 feet long, and the engine room blocks are proceeding at Meyer Neptune in eastern Germany, where the shipyard company builds all its engine room components. You get a sense of the intricacy of the LNG plant. In the sneak peek video, images appear of the assembly of the massive LNG tanks as well as the blocks that will make up the engine room section of the vessel. “We made our commitment to making clean power at sea a reality – and soon the norm – when Icon Class was first announced in 2016, and we’re excited to see construction underway on what will truly be a ship unlike any other,” said Michael Bayley, president and CEO, Royal Caribbean International.
Named Icon of the Seas, it is due to be followed by two sister ships in 20. The only hint for the size of the vessel is its 5,600 passenger capacity. Details of the new cruise ship, which is due to enter service in the fall of 2023, are closely guarded at the moment, but the company is highlighting that it will be the first to use LNG. With five years of planning for its new class of cruise ships, Royal Caribbean International and Meyer Werft celebrated the beginning of construction with the traditional steel cutting ceremony in June 2021 at Meyer Turku in Finland. MSC Cruises has also announced the construction of LNG-fueled cruise ships. Carnival Corporation pioneered the use of LNG-fuel on cruise ships, introducing the AIDAnova in 2018, and it is continuing to build LNG ships for its brands. The company is pledging to net zero emissions by 2050, including what it calls its most ambitious goal of delivery of a net zero cruise ship by 2035.Īs part of its efforts, which include new ship construction, energy efficiency programs, and the development of alternative fuels, the cruise company also provided a sneak peek at the construction of the LNG system for its first cruise ship to use the gas fuel for propulsion.
The engines for the ships will be supplied by MAN Diesel & Turbo.Ĭompared with conventional vessels, the LNG ships will reduce CO 2 emissions by up to 25%, NO x by up to 30%, particulates by up to 60% and sulfur oxides by as much as 100%.Royal Caribbean Group, the parent company for Royal Caribbean, Celebrity, and Silversea Cruises, is highlighting its environmental efforts to reduce its greenhouse gas emissions. Over the coming months, the shipyard, Xiamen Shipbuilding Industry, will build two LNG ships which will then be operated by Siem Car Carriers and chartered by Volkswagen Group Logistics. Each ship will carry up to 6,500 vehicles. LNG drive systems will significantly reduce the atmospheric pollutants emitted by the ships. ( Earlier post.) Volkswagen Group Logistics, the operator Siem Car Carriers and the shipyard Xiamen Shipbuilding celebrated the “steel cutting” (equivalent to foundation laying in the shipbuilding industry) with an official ceremony in the Chinese city of Xiamen.įrom 2019, the two ships powered by liquefied natural gas will carry Volkswagen Group vehicles from Europe to North America. Work has begun on the construction of LNG vessels for logistics within the Volkswagen Group.