By
Elizabeth Robinson |
Meyer Turku has held a steel-cutting ceremony for the first of two Costa Cruises’ LNG-powered ships at its yard in Turku, Finland. To be delivered in October 2019, the newbuild will be one of seven cruise ships ordered by Carnival Corporation (Costa’s parent company) that will be able to be powered by LNG while berthed in port and sailing at sea. Her sister will be delivered in 2021.
“The two new Costa Cruises ships are a true innovation and set new standards for the entire sector,” said Neil Palomba, Costa Cruises’ president. “They will be among the first cruise ships powered by LNG, spurring the development of this green technology.”
Meyer Turku has spent the past two years designing the vessels in collaboration with Costa.
“We are happy to bring our experience with building LNG powered passenger ships to bear,” said Jan Meyer, CEO at Meyer Turku.
During the steel cutting ceremony, Costa Cruises also revealed that the newbuild would be named Costa Smeralda. The name was a result of an agreement between the Italian company and the Costa Smeralda Consortium, which will see other joint initiatives taking place over the coming months.
“We have decided to name the new flagship in the Costa fleet after one of the most enchanting and renowned destinations in Italy,” said Palomba. “The Costa Smeralda area is an exceptionally beautiful place that combines all the excellence that Italy’s finest has to offer, with the glamorous allure that it has become famous for over the years.”
However, that wasn’t the only reason Costa chose the name, Palomba added. “The consortium's commitment to sustainability issues and practices has meant we have found common ground between us on many fronts,” he explained. “So it is with great honour that our ship Costa Smeralda will represent the beauty of this great Sardinia’s destination and will be an ambassador for everything that is magnificent about Italy.”
Costa Smerelda will also debut Costa’s new livery, which will be added to the entire fleet over the coming months. The livery will feature a stylised version of the tricolour Italian flag, while the size of the ship names will be increased.
“With the new livery we are reinforcing the concept of ‘Italianness’ onboard our ships even more,” said Palomba. “Taking our Italian spirit around the world has always been a source of pride for us. And from today we will be doing so even more clearly, with a reproduction of the Italian flag also fluttering on the bow of our ships."