First Ship In Offing For Explora Brand
Orders plus options have been placed with Fincantieri for what will amount to a six-ship flotilla by 2028, crafted to serve a premium segment of the market. The lead newbuild is scheduled to be presented on July 8 at Civitavecchia, the port for Rome, before sailing to Southampton and commencing her maiden cruise on July 17.
Constructed at Fincantieri’s Monfalcone yard, Explora I is a 14-deck vessel offering 461 sea-facing suites, a 1.25-to-1 guest-to-crew ratio, and a standard and extent of passenger facilities targeted at growing demand from what is described as a new generation of travellers. The second vessel in the series, Explora II, is based on the same specification and is due to be delivered from the Sestri-Ponente yard in Genoa by August 2024.
At around 64,000gt, the ships are comparatively modestly sized in relation to the huge, resort-like vessels catering to the volume market, and thereby ensure more operational flexibility in terms of port access and itineraries.
The owning group has stated that the Explora template is one that accommodates the latest environment-friendly technologies and that affords scope for adaptation to new, alternative solutions in the future. While Explora I and the sister newbuild will feature selective catalytic reduction (SCR) systems, arrangements for drawing on shore power when alongside, and provision for the uptake of battery packs, significant revisions have been made to the design concept as applied to the subsequent four ships in the series, in deference to the industry’s energy transition.
In a change to the original contract encompassing the initial four vessels, the specification for Explora III and Explora IV was altered such that the hull will be enlarged by 19m to enable the incorporation of LNG dual-fuel main machinery and LNG fuel storage. Furthermore, the fifth and sixth newbuilds, which are the subject of a memorandum of agreement signed last July with Fincantieri, are foreseen with LNG-capable main engines and hydrogen fuel cell auxiliary plant. The envisaged 6MW fuel cell installations will produce emission-free power for the hotel load and sustain the shipboard net while in port.
Explora Journeys’ Geneva-based parent MSC had earlier conducted a feasibility study, in conjunction with Italian energy company SNAM, into the design and construction of a hydrogen-fuelled cruise ship.
The overall investment represented by six Explora vessels is in the region of EUR3.5bn ($3.8bn). This includes an additional EUR120m ($130m) for fitting Explora III and IV with LNG-capable engines, a modification on a scale that required a temporary halt of work due to the significant redesign involved. The third and fourth newbuilds are now due in 2026 and 2027, while Explora V and VI would command 2027 and 2028 delivery slots.
