Double celebration at French shipyard
The MSC Grandiosa on its way to the christening ceremony in Hamburg (Source: MSC)
MSC Cruises had a major day of celebrations recently at the Saint Nazaire shipyard, Chantiers de l’Atlantique.
The Geneva-based cruise line took delivery of the 6,300-passenger MSC Grandiosa, described as one of the most environmentally advanced ships at sea, in a ceremony attended by MSC group chairman, Gianluigi Aponte. The vessel is the first of two ships in the Meraviglia Plus class, 15m longer than earlier ships in the Meraviglia series. Earlier in the day, the company’s executive chairman, Pierfrancesco Vago, cut the first steel for the MSC Europa, the first of five LNG-powered cruise ships in the World class ordered by MSC and the first ship to be built in France powered by LNG. As the first steel was cut, the cruise line and shipyard revealed a joint R&D project, Pacboat, that will focus on integrating a solid oxide fuel cell into the power system on board the MSC Europa, the first time that this technology has been developed in the cruise sector. The fuel cell will generate electricity and heat from LNG and is likely to reduce greenhouse gas emissions by about 30% as compared with a conventional LNG engine.
