Keel Laid for New Disney Treasure at Meyer Werft

Keel Laid for New Disney Treasure at Meyer Werft

Disney Cruise Line reached a significant milestone in the construction of its next ship, the Disney Treasure, with the keel laying ceremony at Meyer Werft shipyard.

The ship is scheduled to enter service in 2024.

The ceremony, which follows maritime tradition and brings good fortune, was celebrated with the placement of a newly-minted coin under the keel of the ship, according to a statement.

The commemorative coin used in the ceremony featured an etching of Captain Minnie Mouse donning a new look that embodies the ship’s adventure motif. The theme of adventure, inspired by Walt Disney’s love of exploration, will pave the way for captivating onboard experiences that immerse guests in some of the company’s most legendary stories.

SunStone Launches Sylvia Earle in China, Keel Laid for Ocean Odyssey

SunStone Ships and its Infinity-class newbuild project continues to make impressive progress in China, as the company marked the launching of the Sylvia Earle in China, and also laid the keel for the new Ocean Odyssey.

SunStone CEO, Niels-Erik Lund, commented: “We are very pleased with the quality and high building standards of China Merchants Heavy Industry, which are fully at the level of European Shipyards. We are looking forward to continuing our relationships with all our partners in the Infinity-class project and we, even considering the COVID-19 world crisis, are moving fast forward as planned at a very satisfactory speed, safety and quality level.”

The launch of the Sylvia Earle, which carries the hull number CMHI 196-2, took place at China Merchant Heavy Industries in Haimen, China in mid-March. The vessel is chartered to Aurora Expeditions on a year-round long-term charter.

At the same time, the yard laid the keel for the Ocean Odyssey, which will enter service on charter to Vantage Travel in 2022.

The Infinity-class ships developed by SunStone for charter customers are 104 meters long, 18 meters wide and can be configured for between 130 and 200 guests. The vessels carry ice-class IA and Polar Code 6 (PC6). 

The first Infinity-class ship, the Greg Mortimer was delivered in 2019 and is a long-term charter deal with Aurora Expeditions.

Upcoming SunStone Newbuilds:

• Ocean Explorer - 2021 - on charter to Vantage Travel.
• Ocean Victory - 2021 - on charter to Victory Cruise Lines and Albatros Expeditions.
• Sylvia Earle - 2021 - on charter to Aurora Expeditions.
• Ocean Odyssey - 2022 - on charter to Vantage Travel.
• Ocean Albatros - 2022 - on charter to Albatros Expeditions.
• Ocean Discoverer - 2023 - on charter to Victory Cruise Lines and Aurora Expeditions

Keel Laid for Mein Schiff 2

Meyer Turku shipyard

The keel for the new Mein Schiff 2 was laid today at the Meyer Turku shipyard. This important production milestone marks the beginning of the hull assembly, the yard said.

She will be a sixth ship build by Meyer Turku for TUI Cruises. Delivery is scheduled for early 2019.

The new Mein Schiff 2 will be a sister ship to new Mein Schiff 1, which will be delivered from Meyer Turku  in the spring of 2018.

The new class will be 20 meters longer (315m) than Mein Schiff 6. Both ships will have space for 2,894 guests.

TUI Cruises CEOs Wybcke Meier and Frank Kuhlmann were present at the keel laying and were one of the VIP guests to weld coins under the keel of the ship.

“It is always great to visit the shipyard and to see the progress with our coming ships. With new Mein Schiff 1 and 2 we will get two great new ships to lead our fleet in the coming years. We are very happy to see how these ships are taking form," said Meier. 

Of note hte yard is also adding a new massive gantry crane to help speed up cruise ship production times. 

“We have just floated out the newly developed New Mein Schiff 1 and will now begin directly assembling its sister, New Mein Schiff 2, from pre-produced grand blocks. It shows the increasing pace that we are working at, while at the same time implementing our large investment program with the large goliath gantry crane being only one example of it. Working on our ships and our capabilities will prepare us for the increasing international competition," added Jan Meyer, CEO of Meyer Turku.