Cruise & Ferry Review - Autumn/Winter 2023

63 vessels enable us to access less-travelled destinations, providing guests with immersive experiences that do not disrupt residents’ daily lives. CT: Our tours are thoughtfully designed in a way that allows a good spread of visitors in each destination, ensuring minimal impact and underpinning the sustainable growth of the local communities. We sail mainly in the Greek islands, so we have established long standing relations with the local stakeholders in all the destinations we visit and offer well-planned activities ashore by considering their needs. We seek feedback during regular meetings with local authorities and the local Chambers of Commerce to help us develop future deployment plans. CV: Where possible, we use environmentally friendly transport for our destination experiences such as walking or cycling tours to reduce our carbon footprint. We would like to do more, but some of the sustainable tours we introduced previously have tended to be more expensive owing to their nature. These simply did not sell as well as our straightforward experiences, and as some guests need assistance due to their age and mobility, we reluctantly withdrew these from our offering. We are however exploring more cost-effective ways to feature them again in the future. What are your biggest sustainability achievements to date, and why? PD: Our two new ships have allowed us to sail more sustainably. In early 2023, our flagship Bolette and sister ship Borealis were both fitted with diesel-electric engines so they can connect to shore power and use renewable energy while in port. We also optimised engine performance in 2023 across our entire fleet by installing systems that monitor weather, tides and ship timings to update our itineraries. Minimising our environmental impact is a journey that never ends and we’re always reviewing our operations and looking for greener ways to sail our seas. JR: One of our most significant sustainability achievements is incorporating advanced technologies, like the FarSounder Forward-Looking Sonars and advanced hydro propulsion jets on our vessels. These innovations enable us to navigate safely around sea life, reduce underwater noise and avoid using anchors to protect fragile ocean ecosystems. Our ships’ dieselelectric hybrid power management and propulsion system also contribute to maximising fuel efficiency and reducing emissions, showcasing our commitment to sustainable travel and responsible environmental practices. CT: In 2022, we reduced our total fuel consumption by six per cent. We are also fully DNV certified and automatically monitor carbon dioxide emissions based on the European Regulation requirements. More than 80 per cent of water consumed across our fleet was produced by seawater in 2022 as a result of reverse osmosis water treatment and we implemented new onboard recycling schemes to reduce waste production by 15 per cent. Looking forward, Celestyal will continue to actively pursue various initiatives and strategies that can contribute to a greener and more sustainable maritime industry. CV: We have reduced Ambience’s nitrogen dioxide emissions by 95 per cent since its first sailing in 2022, and lowered fuel consumption by seven per cent and carbon dioxide emissions to 5.358 tonnes. Ambassador has already cut Ambition’s emissions by using cleaner marine gas oil and by fitting our engines with selective catalytic reduction units to reduce nitrogen oxides emissions by eight grams per kilowatt hour. Both ships are forecast to meet Category ‘C’ Carbon Intensity Index requirements for the next three years and further improvements are being planned to ensure they continue to meet requirements in the future. “ The smaller size of our company gives us more scope to develop in key areas, such as sustainability, and to ensure our team is environmentally aware” Peter Deer Fred. Olsen Cruise Lines

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