The Italian cruise line Costa Cruises took delivery of the cruise ship Costa Smeralda, a new flagship powered by liquefied natural gas (LNG), the fossil fuel with low environmental impact that represents a real novelty in the cruise sector. The delivery ceremony took place at the Meyer shipyard in Turku (Finland), where the ship was built. Costa Smeralda is the first ship of the Costa fleet to use liquefied natural gas both in port and at sea. It is part of an expansion plan that includes a total of seven new ships being delivered to the Costa Group (which include Costa Crociere, Aida Cruises and Costa Asia) brands by the end of 2023, for a total investment of over six billion Euros. Of these five ships, including the Costa Smeralda and its twin Costa Toscana, also under construction at Meyer Turku with delivery scheduled for 2021, they will also be powered on Lng fuel.
The use of LNG is a great advance for the reduction of environmental impact and significantly improves air quality, since it eliminates sulfur dioxide (zero emissions) and particulate emissions (95-100% reduction). In addition, this fuel also drastically reduces emissions of nitrogen oxide (by 85%) and CO2 (up to 20% less).
“ Costa Smeralda represents a new impulse for the use of LNG in cruise ships, a technology in which we were pioneers in betting and that sets a new course for the sector. In the Costa Group, we have invested in the construction of five new LNG-powered ships in order to continue strengthening our leadership in sustainable tourism. The incorporation of liquefied natural gas marks an innovative milestone in the cruise industry and in the maritime industry in general, since it guarantees the significant reduction of the environmental impact, without compromising other fundamental aspects for us, such as the safety of our passengers and crew”, said Neil Palomba, General Director of Costa Cruises, SpA.
Costa Smeralda will leave the Turku shipyard today, December 6, and sail to the Mediterranean heading for Barcelona on December 18, where will be refilled with liquefied natural gas; in Marseille on December 19 and in Savona on the 20th. On December 21, Costa Smeralda will depart from Savona to begin its first one-week cruise visiting Marseille, Barcelona, Palma, Civitavecchia and La Spezia.
