ABB and Carnival sign strategic partnership for Azipod propulsion services

The 15-year agreement covers maintenance for Azipod XO® propulsion systems powering vessels operating within several Carnival Corporation world-class brands. Azipod XO propulsion is ABB’s solution for high-power open water applications, particularly suited for cruise vessels.

The contract was booked in Q3 2023. The agreement will simplify service management of Azipod XO propulsion units, with ABB experts remotely available 24/7 to support the vessels’ electric engineering crew on maintenance, based on ABB Ability™ Remote Diagnostic System and ABB Ability™ Condition Monitoring for Azipod propulsion. The owner accumulates data about Azipod propulsion performance, making spare part management and dry dock planning increasingly predictable and cost-efficient.

“This agreement helps optimize our long-term fleet performance while supporting our ongoing efforts to further improve energy and fuel efficiency and reduce emissions throughout our global operations,” said Michael Kaczmarek, Senior Vice President, Marine Technology, Carnival Corporation. “We are also creating predictability on maintenance costs and spares planning which delivers significant gains for planning, procedures and ship performance over the long term. We see this strategic and collaborative agreement as an excellent example of what can be achieved in our ship performance objectives through collaboration with our key technology suppliers.”

“The agreement and its 15-year timeframe further strengthen the long-standing collaboration between ABB and Carnival Corporation. We take great pride in making sure Carnival Corporation’s cruise vessels get the full benefits of an optimized maintenance plan, service offering and access to our digital services around the world,” said Juha Koskela, Division President, ABB Marine & Ports.

ABB secured its first Azipod propulsion order for the Carnival Cruise Line ship Carnival Elation in 1995, and after selecting the solution for a second Fantasy-class vessel, Carnival Corporation has gone on to specify Azipod propulsion for more than 40 vessels for its various cruise brands.

Azipod propulsion has delivered significant gains for performance, efficiency, sustainability and reliability for the marine sector since its introduction over 30 years ago. The gearless, steerable propulsion system, with the electric drive motor in a pod outside the ship’s hull, can rotate 360 degrees to increase vessel maneuverability and efficiency, while cutting fuel consumption by up to 20 percent compared to conventional shaftline systems. Since the first installation on a cruise ship over 25 years ago, Azipod technology has saved more than 1 million tons of fuel in the cruise segment alone.