Carnival Corporation & plc Orders New Ships for Costa Crociere, AIDA Cruises
New Vessels Will Add More Than 6,500 Total Lower Berths to Fleet, Build Upon Carnival's Leadership Position in European Marketplace
MIAMI, June 12, 2006 /PRNewswire-FirstCall/ -- Carnival Corporation & plc (NYSE/LSE: CCL; NYSE: CUK), today announced that it has ordered two cruise ships for its European brands with an option for a third.
Included in today's order are a 92,700-ton vessel for Genoa, Italy-based Costa Crociere, as well as an option for a sister ship, both to be built by Italy's Fincantieri shipyard, and a 68,500-ton ship for its Rostock, Germany-based AIDA Cruises to be built by Germany's Meyer Werft yard.
The new vessels will add more than 6,500 total lower berths to Carnival Corporation & plc's fleet and build upon its leadership position within the rapidly expanding European cruise market, with six million passengers expected to set sail by 2015.
The new Costa ships will be built at Fincantieri's Marghera shipyard and have a basis-two capacity of 2,260 each. The first ship is scheduled to enter service in spring 2009. If the option is exercised, the second ship is slated to debut in fall 2010. The all-in cost for each vessel will be approximately 420 million euro.
Including the new ship and option, Costa currently has five new vessels on order from Fincantieri representing 13,520 total lower berths.
The new AIDA ship will have a basis-two capacity of 2,050. Scheduled delivery is spring 2010. The vessel's all-in cost will be approximately 330 million euro and marks the fourth 68,500-ton vessel ordered for the brand in just the past 19 months. Three other vessels, also being built at Meyer Werft, are slated to debut in 2007, 2008 and 2009.
All four vessels will operate under AIDA Cruises' informal "club resort" cruise concept which is marketed exclusively to German-speaking clientele and offers a product aimed at younger, more active passengers who enjoy a host of on-board amenities and facilities.
According to Carnival Corporation & plc Chairman and CEO Micky Arison, today's announcement continues the company's aggressive expansion strategy in the European market.
"We have invested a great deal of time and money expanding and diversifying the European cruise market which possesses incredible potential for growth. Costa is already the clear leader in the southern European market and AIDA holds the same distinction in Germany. These new state-of-the-art ships for Costa and AIDA will further bolster their positions in the respective markets and ensure that we have adequate capacity available to meet growing demand for European cruises," Arison said.
Commented Costa Crociere Chairman and CEO Pier Luigi Foschi, "We've demonstrated that the European market is seeking new itinerary alternatives and that requires a balanced mix of ships, especially for the more experienced cruiser. Costa's new programs, including voyages featuring Dubai in winter/spring 2006/2007 and a series of 13 cruises to the Far East scheduled for spring 2006 to spring 2007, have received tremendous response from our European customers, including a number of sailings selling out in a matter of days. New ships will allow us to continue to diversify our cruise offerings for European vacationers," he said.
The German-speaking market is one of the fastest growing in Europe with one million passengers expected to set sail by 2010. "To keep pace with this dramatic growth, we must continue to build ships and develop unique cruise products such as AIDA that can cater specifically to the preferences of German-speaking clientele," Foschi said.
Including the three new ships announced today, Costa and AIDA together have nine new ships on order representing a collective 21,720 total lower berths - more than any other European cruise line.
Carnival Corporation & plc is the largest cruise vacation group in the world, with a portfolio of 12 cruise brands in North America, Europe and Australia, comprised of Carnival Cruise Lines, Holland America Line, Princess Cruises, Seabourn Cruise Line, Windstar Cruises, AIDA Cruises, Costa Cruises, Cunard Line, Ocean Village, P&O Cruises, Swan Hellenic, and P&O Cruises Australia.
Together, these brands operate 80 ships totaling approximately 141,000 lower berths with 16 new ships scheduled to enter service between June 2006 and spring 2010. Carnival Corporation & plc also operates the leading tour companies in Alaska and the Canadian Yukon, Holland America Tours and Princess Tours. Traded on both the New York and London Stock Exchanges, Carnival Corporation & plc is the only group in the world to be included in both the S&P 500 and the FTSE 100 indices.
SOURCE Carnival Corporation & plc
06/12/2006
CONTACT: Media, US, Tim Gallagher of Carnival Corporation & plc,
+1-305-599-2600, ext. 16000,
or UK, Sarah Lindgreen or Ruban Yogarajah, both
of Brunswick Group, +44-20-7404-5959;
or Investor Relations, Beth Roberts of
Carnival Corporation & plc, +1-305-406-4832
Web site: http://www.carnivalcorp.com
