Newbuild is the third next-generation ship to join the cruise line's fleet over the past 12 months
By
Rebecca Gibson |
MSC Cruises took delivery of the new MSC Seaview from Fincantieri at its shipyard in Monfalcone, Italy on 4 June 2018.
The 5,179-guest ship was handed over to MSC Cruises during a ceremony attended by Gianluigi Aponte, shipowner and founder and executive chairman of MSC Group; Pierfrancesco Vago, executive chairman of MSC Cruises; members of the Aponte and Aponte-Vago families; and Giuseppe Bono, CEO of Fincantieri. Other attendees included key dignitaries and representatives from regional and local authorities.
During the ceremony, the shipyard’s director Roberto Olivari presented MSC Seaview’s master Pier Paolo Scala with an ampoule containing the first water that touched the hull when the ship was floated from the building dock last year.
“MSC Seaview will bring yet another new, distinctively innovative MSC Cruises product to the market as she boasts cutting-edge design and features the latest marine and environmental technology,” said Vago. “She is an example of our commitment to bring the best and most innovative tonnage to the market, and our ambition to set each time a new standard in the industry. The Seaside class is yet another brand new, highly-innovative prototype that we introduce – the fifth to date, since we entered the cruising industry only 15 years ago. Moreover, I am proud to say, together with her sister ship MSC Seaside, it is the biggest ship ever built in Italy.”
Designed for warmer climates and to bring guests closer to the sea, the 154,000gt, 323-metre-long MSC Seaview is the biggest cruise ship to have been built in Italy to date. MSC Seaview has also secured Green Star 3 Design notation from international classification society RINA, which recognises the vessel’s environmental credentials. The ship is equipped with an exhaust gas cleaning system (scrubber), an advanced waste water treatment solution, systems for preventing oil discharge from machinery spaces, the ballast water treatment system, and the ship’s Environmental Management Plan.
“We will remember MSC Seaview, without doubt, as an authentic undertaking,” said Bono. “Just six months ago in fact, we celebrated in this same yard the delivery of the largest ship ever built in Italy, MSC Seaside, a revolutionary prototype. Today we are repeating this success with her sister ship.”
Following the handover, MSC Seaview embarked on a three-day voyage to her new homeport of Genoa, Italy. The newbuild will be christened by godmother and Italian actress Sophia Loren on 9 June, before departing for her inaugural cruise on 10 June.
The vessel will sail an inaugural 2018 summer season in the Mediterranean, taking guests to seven ports in four countries. These will include the Genoa, Naples and Messina in Italy; Valletta, Malta; Barcelona, Spain; and Marseille, France. For the winter 2018-2019 season, MSC Seaview will head to Brazil and offer an itinerary that includes calls in Santos, Ilha Grande, Buzios, Porto Belo and Camboriu.
MSC Seaview is the third next-generation MSC Cruises ship that has entered service over the past 12 months, following on from MSC Meraviglia in June 2017 and MSC Seaside in December 2017. All three vessels are part of MSC Cruises’ 10-year €10.5 billion (US$12.2 billion) investment plan, which see a total of 12 ships come into service over the next decade. Next up will be MSC Bellissima, a Meraviglia Class vessel that will be christened at the Port of Southampton, UK on 2 March 2019.
“We are increasing capacity at record speeds,” said Vago. “These are very exciting times for us, and we are already merely nine months away of the completion of our next ship, MSC Bellissima – the first of two Meraviglia class ships that will come into service over a six-month period next year.”