120 A refurbishment renaissance Cruise and ferry operators continue to make safety, energy efficiency and aesthetic upgrades to their ships. Laura Hyde spotlights selected projects completed so far in 2024 FEATURE There are over 300 expedition, ocean and river cruise ships and hundreds of ferries currently in service. All these vessels must enter dry dock at regular intervals for general maintenance, inspections and technical upgrades, as well as retrofitting projects as more energy-efficient engines and new technologies come to the market. Operators must also be conscious of ensuring a ship’s interiors remain aesthetically appealing to today’s passengers to compete with the many newbuild ships coming into service. As such, repair and refurbishment yards across the globe have been a hive of activity in the first half of 2024. Grand Bahama Shipyard, Freeport, The Bahamas The Grand Bahama Shipyard has dry docks that can accommodate vessels up to 300 metres in length. In late 2023, the shipyard commissioned the construction of two floating docks, which it hopes to have operational by 2026. In the first half of 2024 the shipyard completed numerous cruise ship refurbishment projects, including a month-long dry dock for Royal Caribbean International’s Grandeur of the Seas. The team refreshed cabins and carried out scheduled maintenance and technical upgrades on the 28-year-old ship. In another notable project, the shipyard repaired Carnival Cruise Line’s Carnival Freedom in March following a fire in its funnel. Fayard, Munkebo, Denmark Catering to passenger vessels since 1916, Fayard has four large graving dry docks and plenty of berth, as well as a safe anchorage area close to the Fayard workshops. All dry docks and berths are well covered with cranes which offer a lifting capacity of up to 1,200 tonnes. The largest dry dock is 415 metres long by 90 metres wide. The shipyard dry docks more than 130 vessels per year and so far in 2024 has completed projects onboard numerous ships, including Lindblad Expeditions’ expedition vessels National Geographic Endurance and National Geographic Resolution, as well as Fjord Line’s ferries Stavangerfjord and Fjord Photo: Grand Bahama shipyard Royal Caribbean International’s Grandeur of the Seas spent time in dry dock at Grand Bahama shipyard in the first half of 2024
RkJQdWJsaXNoZXIy NzQ1NTk=