Agreement with Carnival Corp to construct two 125,000-ton vessels
In a huge fillip for Japan’s shipbuilding industry Mitsubishi Heavy Industries said that it has reached agreement with global cruise ship giant Carnival Corp to construct two 125,000-ton vessels, becoming the first Asian yard to build cruiseships for more than seven years.
The firms will next work on such details as the contract price and technical specifications, targeting an official agreement before the end of the year.
The two 3,250-passenger ships will be constructed at Mitsubishi Heavy’sNagasaki shipyard with delivery dates scheduled for March 2015 and March 2016. Mitsubishi Heavy is said to be anticipating the order to total around 80 billion yen, but a strong yen could reduce the figure.
The shipbuilding order will be Mitsubishi Heavy’s first for a cruiseline since a fire broke out on the Diamond Princess ship during construction in October 2002 .
Source: Seatrade Asia