Page 53: of Maritime Reporter Magazine (April 2026)

CRUISE SHIPBUILDING | EUROPEAN YARDS class program, due in 2030 and 2031.

This constituted the second tranche of

MSC orders won by the French yard in 2025, the earlier deal having embraced ? fth and sixth ships in the series.

Chantiers de l’Atlantique has also consolidated its business relationship with the Royal Caribbean Group this year by landing a ? rm contract for two vessels commanding delivery positions in 2029 and 2032, plus four on option, based on a new type designated the Dis- covery class. A total of 21 ships have been built for the organization over the past 40 years. Current production em-

Fincantieri's investment plan includes a new jumbo crane at braces a seventh 231,000gt Oasis-type the Monfalcone yard for cruise ship production. behemoth the Celebrity Xcite for the premium Celebrity brand.

Norwegian Cruise Line's recently commissioned Norwegian

Through the intervention of September

Luna, from Fincantieri's Marghera (Venice) yard. 2024, the Federal Government and Nie- dersachsen obtained a total 80% share of the then cash-strapped shipbuilder in ex- change for a EUR 400 million ($465m) injection. Up to that point, the company had been under Meyer family ownership and control for seven generations.

Consequently, given the Italian and

French state holdings in Fincantieri and

Chantiers de l’Atlantique, respectively, national involvement has gained added dimension across the entities that large- ly sustain European pre-eminence in the luxury, high-capacity cruiseship produc- tion market.

However, compared to the situation at its main European competitors, there is an altogether different strand to the

Image courtesy NCL Image courtesy Fincantieri

German intervention, in that the agree- ments include provision for a possible buy-back by the family at some future stage. The public involvement in Meyer

Werft is viewed as interim, the central objective being to ? nancially stabilize the shipbuilder while strengthening competitiveness.

It is understood that the Meyer fam- ily retains 100% of the shares in pre- mier Finnish shipbuilder Meyer Turku, full ownership having been obtained 11 years ago through the purchase of the state’s 30% holding via Finnish Indus- trial Investment. www.marinelink.com 53

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