Keel of new cruise ship laid in Finland
During the keel-laying ceremony in Turku
Scheduled for completion in 2017, Mein Schiff 6 is the fourth high-technology cruise ship to be built for Germany-based TUI Cruises by Meyer Turku, wholly owned by the German shipbuilder Meyer Werft.
Following an old tradition, coins were placed under the keel block for luck. Attending the keel-laying ceremony were representatives of TUI Cruises, Royal Caribbean Cruises, Meyer Turku and the classification society DNV GL.
Mein Schiff 6 will be 294m long, have 15 decks with 1,267 staterooms and capacity for 2,534 passengers. Ninety per cent of the cabins will be outside cabins and 82% will have a balcony.
The vessel will have a number of improvements over its sister ships Mein Schiff 3-5 in terms of energy efficiency and passenger amenities, according to the shipyard. Thanks to an advanced exhaust cleaning system using a scrubber and catalytic converter, it said, sulphur emissions can be reduced by about 99% and nitrogen oxide emissions by 75%.
