Fincantieri Finalizes $9B Cruise Ship Order from Norwegian Cruise Line
Fincantieri and Norwegian Cruise Line Holdings have completed a strategic cruise ship newbuild order that will add four of the largest cruise ships in the industry to Norwegian Cruise Lines. A letter of Intent for the ships was first announced in April 2024 with Reuters reporting today the finalized order is being valued at approximately $9.34 billion for the vessels to deliver between 2030 and 2036.
Norwegian’s CEO Harry Sommer explained the order as a long-term growth strategy for the brand and reserving critical construction slots. He said it would be a new class of cruise ship that expands on the company’s strategies while also setting new standards for innovation, luxury, and sustainability. It was part of a larger corporate strategy that also ordered two ships for the company’s ultra-luxury Regent Seven Seas Cruises brand and two additional vessels for the premium brand Oceania Cruises.
The four cruise ships for the company’s namesake contemporary segment brand have increased approximately 20 percent in size from the original announcement and will rival the largest cruise ships ever built in Italy and by Fincantieri. The four ships for Norwegian Cruise Line are now reported to be approximately 226,000 gross tons with 5,100 lower berths and a total occupancy including crew of over 8,300 people.
Norwegian has lagged behind the other major cruise brands (Royal Caribbean International, Carnival Cruise Line, and MSC Cruises) in the size of ships. Norwegian’s current largest cruise ship is the Norwegian Encore delivered from Meyer Werft in 2019 at 169,000 gross tons and a capacity of just under 4,000 passengers. Norwegian’s largest capacity cruise ship is the Norwegian Escape (4,200 passengers) introduced in 2015, but the brand adjusted its strategy to focus on a more spacious design.
The new contract expands the relationship with Fincantieri which is also building the innovative Norwegian Prima class which started as a smaller, more luxurious large ship design with accommodations for 3,100 passengers each on the Norwegian Prima (2022) and Norwegian Viva (2023). Norwegian expanded the third and fourth ships of the class, Norwegian Aqua (2025) and Norwegian Luna (2026), by 10 percent to 156,300 gross tons and 3,500 passengers. The fifth and sixth vessels of the class due in 2027 and 2028 will be further increased by 10 percent in size and built to be methanol-ready for future fuel.
Fincantieri said of today’s order its value “is considered very important.” The Italian shipbuilder recovered its cruise ship construction position after the pandemic and as of July 2024 had 27 cruise ship construction orders including yachts, luxury, and large vessels. It was part of a 96-ship backlog for the group valued as of July 2024 at over €41 billion ($42.7 billion) counting soft backlog (i.e. provisional orders).
The new cruise ships for Norwegian will be built at the company’s yard in Monfalcone, Italy with the first ship due in 2030. The sister ships will follow at two-year intervals in 2032, 2034, and 2036.
Norwegian’s new vessels will rival an order placed by Carnival Corporation with Fincantieri in July 2024 for three 230,000 gross ton cruise ships for Carnival Cruise Line. Those ships were reported each at 230,000 gross tons with over 3,000 passenger cabins and a capacity of approximately 8,000 passengers. Carnival’s first ship is due in 2029 followed by deliveries in 2031 and 2033. The Industry’s largest cruise ship, however, will be the Star of the Seas due to enter service for Royal Caribbean International this summer at approximately 250,000 gross tons and 5,600 passengers (double occupancy).
Currently, the largest cruise ship built in Italy, by Fincantieri, is the Sun Princess for Carnival Corporation’s Princess Cruises. Delivered in 2024, the ship is 177,882 gross tons with accommodations for approximately 4,300 passengers. She will be joined by a sister ship Star Princess in October 2025.
With Norwegian finalizing its order, each of the four large cruise brands has placed significant additional large ship orders over the past 12 months. Analysts note that the industry has been capacity constrained since the restart after the pandemic, with demand outpacing the addition of new berths. The investments in new ships are seen as a further demonstration of the corporation’s confidence in the future growth of the cruise industry.