On July 10, Norwegian Cruise Line Holdings (NCLH) took effect of the order for two cruise ships with Italian shipbuilder Fincantieri. The order was placed by NCLH on behalf of its Oceania Cruises brand and is part of Fincantieri’s new shipbuilding program with NCLH, valued at US$9 billion.
Norwegian Cruise Line Holdings stated that to enhance profitability, optimize the delivery schedule for new ships, and consider shipyard capacity, the delivery dates for the two newly confirmed cruise ships have been rescheduled from the originally planned 2030 and 2031 to 2032 and 2035, respectively.
In April 2024, Norwegian Cruise Line Holdings and Fincantieri placed an order for the first two cruise ships for Oceania Cruises through a US$9 billion new shipbuilding plan. The total tonnage of this series of cruise ships is 86,000 and can accommodate about 1,450 passengers. The first cruise ship “Oceania Sonata” was started on June 4, 2025, and the second sister ship was named “Oceania Arietta”. The first two ships are expected to be delivered in 2027 and 2029 respectively.
Based on this huge shipbuilding plan, Fincantieri will also build two cruise ships for Regent Seven Seas Cruises, a subsidiary of Norwegian Cruise Line Holdings, which are expected to be delivered in 2026 and 2029, with a gross tonnage of 77,000 and can accommodate approximately 850 passengers; and build four cruise ships for Norwegian Cruise Line, which are expected to be delivered in 2030, 2032, 2034 and 2036 respectively. They are the largest cruise ships ever built by this cruise brand, with a gross tonnage of approximately 200,000 and each cruise ship can accommodate approximately 5,000 passengers.
Among them, orders from Regent Seven Seas Cruises and Oceania Cruises will take effect in 2024, while orders from Norwegian Cruise Line will take effect in 2025. With the latest publicly announced option orders, Fincantieri and Norwegian Cruise Line Holdings have recently signed contracts for the construction of 10 cruise ships of three types.
It is worth noting that when the first batch of three types of eight newly built cruise ships was announced last year, no information about alternative orders was disclosed. We will continue to monitor whether there are any other option orders.
On March 27, 2025, Fincantieri began construction of the first “Prestige” class cruise ship, the “Seven Seas Prestige”, for Regent Seven Seas Cruises as part of this large-scale shipbuilding program. This marks the next generation of cruise ships following Fincantieri’s construction of the “Seven Seas Explorer” series (2016), the “Seven Seas Splendor” series (2020), and the “Seven Seas Grandeur” series (2023).
The “Seven Seas Prestige” is 257 meters long, with a gross tonnage of 77,000, equipped with 434 cabins, accommodating approximately 850 passengers, one of the highest passenger ratios in the industry. The cruise ship will embody the sophistication and refinement of timeless elegance, integrate the most advanced environmental protection technology, and introduce new accommodation categories, new dining and more exciting experiences for luxury travelers.
It is worth noting that on the same day that the option order was announced, Fincantieri delivered the second cruise ship, Oceania Allura, to Oceania Cruises. This is the newest addition to the Oceania Cruises fleet. Its sister ship, Oceania Vista, was delivered in May 2023 at the same shipyard. These two cruise ships are the first newbuilds for Oceania Cruises in more than a decade.
To date, Norwegian Cruise Line Holdings has 13 cruise ships either under construction or on order at Fincantieri shipyards, with delivery dates extending as far as 2036.
Fincantieri, the world’s largest shipbuilding group, also announced on July 10 that its Vard shipyard had signed a contract with the US research institute InkFish to design and build a research vessel. The contract is worth more than 200 million euros and is expected to be delivered in the second quarter of 2028. It is said to be the most advanced research vessel to date.
Vard is responsible for the entire construction process of the new ship, including design, hull construction, outfitting, integration, and sea trials. The hull will be built at Vard’s shipyard in Romania, while the final outfitting, commissioning, and delivery will take place at the Norwegian shipyard.
Since the beginning of this year, Fincantieri has undertaken 12+2 cruise ships, including 2 high-end cruise ships of Marella Cruises, a cruise brand under TUI AG, 2 cruise ships of AIDA Cruises under Carnival Group, 4 cruise ships of Norwegian Cruise Line, 2+2 cruise ships of Viking Cruises and the latest 2 cruise ships of Norwegian Cruise Line Holdings.