PORT CANAVERAL, Fla., Aug. 21,
2018 /PRNewswire/ -- Carnival Cruise Line, the world's
largest cruise operator, has reached an agreement in principle with
the Canaveral Port Authority on a new state-of-the-art terminal
able to accommodate its new 180,000-ton ship, the largest ever
constructed for the line, set to debut in 2020.
The terms of the agreement are expected to be included on the
agenda of the Canaveral Port Authority Board of Commissioners'
meeting on Wednesday, Aug. 29, 2018.
If approved, the agreement will clear the way for Carnival Cruise
Line's plans to homeport the as-yet-unnamed 5,286-lower berth ship
at Port Canaveral, further bolstering the line's position as the
port's number one cruise operator.
The vessel will offer an array of groundbreaking,
never-before-seen features and attractions while also being the
first North American-based cruise ship to be powered by Liquefied
Natural Gas (LNG), part of Carnival Corporation's "green cruising"
design platform.
"We are very excited about the prospects of homeporting our
largest ship at Port Canaveral, a valued business partner for more
than 25 years," said Christine
Duffy, president of Carnival Cruise Line. "Easily
accessible from all over the southeast with excellent facilities
and friendly staff, Port Canaveral is one of our most popular and
fastest-growing homeports. This fantastic new ship, coupled
with our future plans for Port Canaveral, will provide guests with
an unparalleled seagoing vacation experience from the minute they
arrive."
"The Port and Carnival Cruise Line have worked closely for
decades building a successful partnership together. We are proud of
our partners at Carnival and eager to begin this new chapter in our
business relationship," said Canaveral Port Authority Port Director
and CEO Capt. John Murray.
"Carnival's commitment to Port Canaveral demonstrates their
confidence in our ability to support one of the world's most
successful cruise brands. We're excited and looking forward
to having their largest and newest class of ship homeported
here."
Construction of the 180,000-ton cruise ship is scheduled to
begin in November 2018 with the
official steel-cutting ceremony at the Meyer-Werft shipyard in
Turku, Finland. Further ship
details, along with itineraries from Port Canaveral, are expected
to be announced in 2019.
The decision to base the new ship on the Space Coast continues a
decades-long relationship and reinforces Carnival Cruise Line's
position as Port Canaveral's number one cruise operator. The
line currently has three year-round ships based in Port Canaveral
carrying upwards of 650,000 passengers a year. In October, Carnival
Cruise Line will also reposition the newer Carnival Breeze to
homeport at Port Canaveral.
About Port Canaveral
Led by the elected five-member Canaveral Port Authority Board of
Commissioners and Port Director and CEO, Captain John Murray, Port Canaveral is one of the
world's most dynamic and exciting ports. A world-class gateway for
cruises, cargo, recreation and logistics, as well as a gateway to
new frontiers in space, Port Canaveral hosts more than 4 million
revenue cruise passengers through its state-of-the-art terminals
and 5.5 million of tons of cargo annually, including bulk,
break-bulk, project, and containerized. The Port is strategically
located to service all Florida
markets, as well as the Southeastern
United States. In addition to world class cruise facilities
and diverse cargo operations, Port Canaveral offers more
recreational opportunities than all other Florida deep-water seaports combined. For more
information, visit www.PortCanaveral.com
About Carnival Cruise Line
Carnival Cruise Line, part
of Carnival Corporation & plc (NYSE/LSE: CCL; NYSE: CUK), is
"The World's Most Popular Cruise Line®" with 26 ships operating
three- to 24-day voyages to The Bahamas, Caribbean, Mexican Riviera, Alaska, Hawaii, Canada, New England, Bermuda, Cuba, Australia, New
Zealand, the Pacific Islands and Southeast Asia. The
line currently has three new ships scheduled for delivery – the
133,500-ton Carnival Panorama set to debut in 2019 and two
as-yet-unnamed 180,000-ton ships in 2020 and 2022.
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SOURCE Carnival Cruise Line