Costa Cruises, celebrated the first steel-cutting for Costa Toscana, the company’s second ship that can be powered in port and at sea by liquefied natural gas (LNG), at the Meyer Turku shipyard in Finland. The Italy-flagged vessel is to be delivered in 2021.
The Costa Toscana is the company’s second LNG-fuelled vessel, following Costa Esmeralda, which will be ready for delivery for Costa Cruises in October 2019.
Neil Palomba, Costa Cruises president commented
The steel-cutting ceremony for the Costa Toscana is another step forward in our sustainable development plan.
Palomba added that LNG for cruise vessels is a major steps towards sustainability, marking a new era in the use of low carbon fuels that will reduce exhaust emissions to help protect the environment without compromising on safety, in line with our top priorities.
Costa Smeralda and Costa Toscana are part of a strategic plan for carbon footprint reduction, defined by Carnival Corporation and implemented by Costa Cruises.
The company said that the measures adopted enabled Carnival Corporation to meet its 25% carbon reduction goal for 2020 some three years ahead of schedule, with a 27.6% decrease in emissions from operations achieved by 2018. In the meantime, Carnival announced in early July its initiative on minimising single-use plastics by the end of 2021, taking another step towards a greener future in shipping.
