MV Werften signs design agreement with Foreship

 The 20,000gt cruise vessels will be built at MV Werften's yard in Stralsund, Germany, with production starting in late 2017 and deliveries from spring 2019.
“We are excited to build a series of the world's first purpose-built expedition yachts, with PC6 polar-class designation,” said Jarmo Laakso, managing director of MV Werften. “Our own staff at all sites and other subcontractors have already been fully involved in this project. Foreship has proven to be a strong and reliable cooperation partner in numerous similar large-scale projects and will be a valued support in addition to our own workforce.”
Foreship is one of the leading cruise ship design and engineering companies worldwide, having been involved in projects such as Quantum of the Seas for Royal Caribbean, Norwegian Breakaway for Norwegian Cruise Line as well as Mein Schiff 3 and Mein Schiff 4 for TUI Cruises.
About 160m long and 23m wide, the Endeavour-class vessels for luxury cruise line Crystal Cruises – a brand of Malaysia's Genting Group, owner of MV Werften – will be the world’s largest and most spacious expedition yachts. They are designed to operate mainly in Arctic and Antarctic regions and cruise in the tropical regions when travelling between the poles. They can accommodate up to 200 passengers in 100 suites and the same amount of crew.
“A new era in shipbuilding is being rung in at MV Werften. This is an important day for the shipyards in the country,” said Harry Glawe, economics minister of the German state of Mecklenburg-West Pomerania, at the signing ceremony. “Hundreds of jobs are being secured and created. We are pleased about Genting’s long-term commitment in our country.”
In April, Genting acquired three shipyards in the state – which borders the Baltic Sea – from the German shipbuilder Nordic Yards and named them MV Werften. The shipyards are in Wismar, Rostock and Stralsund.