Trieste, 20 December 2016Virgin Voyages, a Virgin Group brand and new cruise industry operator, has entrusted the construction of three cruise ships (valued at about 2 billion euros) to Fincantieri, a company owned by CDP Group. The ships will be built at Sestri Ponente, near Genoa, with deliveries scheduled in 2020, 2021 and 2022. The new units will be 110,000 gross tons, 278 meters in length, and a width of 38 meters. They will feature over 1,400 cabins with accommodation capacity of more than 2,800 passengers, assisted by a crew of over 1,100. The giants of the sea will stand out for their quality high-tech and typical Italian comfort - a true Made-in-Italy success, confirming Fincantieri’s role of international shipbuilder.
This role was further demonstrated by the operation launched in Australia to form a new company to manage the participation in the Future Frigates - Sea 5000 program in Canberra. The initiative reflects the desire to closely follow the assessment phase of the program that includes the construction of nine next-generation frigates for the Royal Australian Navy (RAN) – a prestigious goal, on which Fincantieri has been working since April.
The Italian group was selected by Capability Acquisition and Sustainment Group (CASG), a body of the Australian Department of Defense, to take part in the evaluation and selection process, which will last about a year and lead to the awarding of the contract. Fincantieri’s participation in the tender process derives from its experience designing FREMM frigates, currently in service for the Italian and French navies.
The excellence of Fincantieri know-how is recognized by the Australian academic world. Flinders University, in Adelaide, South Australia in Adelaide, which already contributes to the heritage of naval powers of the country by offering Bachelor degree studies in Maritime Engineering, Engineering in Naval Architecture and numerous other research projects , has selected the Italian company as the ideal partner to develop further research opportunities offered by the SEA 5000 program. Participating students will have the opportunity to carry out an internship in Italy, with the aim of encouraging the birth a long-term collaboration in the development of shared research and education programs related to shipbuilding.