MSC Group to welcome two LNG-powered vessels

MSC Group and Chantiers de l’Atlantique have reached two crucial milestones for the construction of two new vessels.

MSC World Europa and MSC Euribia will be the first LNG-powered ships to join the MSC Cruises fleet next year, signifying a €3 billion investment in such ships.

World Europa II construction is also set to begin in early 2023.

“Today represents another crucial milestone in our road towards nett zero emissions for our marine operations by 2050,” stated Pierfrancesco Vago, executive chairman of MSC Cruises.

We are announcing significant construction developments in not one but two of our next-generation LNG-powered vessels, bringing us ever closer to our vision of the emissions-free cruise industry. “As the cleanest fuel currently available at scale for our operations, LNG is at the forefront of the momentous energy transition we must go through.”

The traditional coin ceremony took place as the keel for MSC Cruises’ second LNG-powered ship, MSC Euribia, was laid. MSC Euribia will be one of the most environmentally high performing contemporary boats produced in France.

As godmothers, Anne Claire Juventin, quality control manager at Chantiers de l’Atlantique, and Valentina Mancini, brand manager at MSC Cruises, represented the shipowner and shipbuilder, respectively.

“It is undoubtedly an exceptional event we are living today,” said Laurent Castaing, general manager of Chantiers de l’Atlantique.

This is not just because these are the 15th and 16th ships we are building for MSC Cruises, demonstrating the exceptional quality of the connection we created between our two companies in the 1990s; it is also because they will rank among the largest and finest in the world’s cruise market.

But it’s also and mainly because they mark a significant step forwards in terms of what future cruise ships will look like.

“At the time of delivery, they will have the market’s lowest carbon footprint in terms of emissions per passenger and per day.”