in October as Carnival Dream, the biggest
dinary growth of the raw material costs
passenger ship ever built by Fincantieri (or
(primarily steel price up to 25% during
in Italy, for that matter) was launched in
the first half of 2008 from the average
Photo: Fincantieri – Cantieri Navali Italiani S.p.A.
dollar exchange rate and by the extraor-
Monfalcone.
cost of 2007). Furthermore, the renew-
Carnival Dream will be the flagship
al of the labour contract agreement has
of Carnival Cruise Line’s fleet, a brand of
had an impact in the finances.
Carnival Group, the main operator in the
There are still orders coming in,
however, raising the order portfolio to €
global cruise ship sector. Delivery is scheduled for autumn 2009.
11.6 billion. The resulting average backlog is equal to € 8.2 billion, and equiva-
MEYER WERFT STAYS ACTIVE
lent to approximately three years of work.
The third significant shipyard in especially
While described as “robust and impres-
the cruise ship business is Meyer Werft.
sive” by the Italians, the backlog can not
The total order book of the Meyer-Nep-
guarantee saturation of all company ship-
tun Group – comprising ten cruise ships,
yards in the medium term, considering al-
four LPG/LEG tankers and two river cruise
so the specific products lifecycle require-
ships – accounts for almost € 5 billion
ments.
and is expected to ensure a full work-
Still, it’s not all doom-and-gloom:
Fincantieri had good cause to celebrate
load until 2012.
In October, Meyer Werft delivered
Photo: Meyer Werft
market situation has “changed radically”. Fincantieri is the world leader in the
construction of cruise ships with a current
market share of approximately 40%. The
Fincantieri armada features 62 passenger ships, of which 47 have been delivered since 1990, and 15 on order or under construction at the various shipyards
of the Group.
In addition to the global financial
crisis, the shipyard is also being affected
by the residual consequences of the euro/
Meyer-Neptun Group’s order book is expected to ensure a full workload until 2012.
seatec 1/2009
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