VARD (Fincantieri group) enters in the crocieristico market with the construction of four ships for Ponant



VARD, active Norwegian society in the planning and offshore construction of means and special ships that are controlled with 55.63% of the vital one from the navalmeccanico group Italian Fincantieri, have signed a letter of attempts with the French shipowner Ponant, society controlled from the Artemis group (holding company of the Pinault family), for the realization of four cruise ships of luxury of small dimensions. VARD has emphasized that the agreement, that is subject to various conditions between which the financing to the shipowner, has historical character marking the income of the company in the crocieristico segment.

The four units, that they will be realized by the productive Network of group VARD, will have a length of 128 meters, a 18 width of and a tonnage of about 10.000 tons. They will be able to reach a speed of 15 knots and to accommodate 180 passengers (in 92 cabins) and 110 members of the crew. The deliveries are previewed in Norway between the summer of the 2018 and that of 2019.

The new ships will be developed by VARD, Ponant and Fincantieri on the base of the acquired experience from the Italian navalmeccanico group with the construction for the same Ponant of the four units of luxury the Boréal, the Austral, the Soléal and the Lyrial delivered respective in 2010, 2011, 2013 and 2015.

VARD has evidenced that the new ships will be constructed adopting the most advanced technologies in topic of environmental protection and for via of the reduced dimensions they will be able to reach ports and inaccessible destinations to greater units. The preparation of the internal ones will be conceived "on a human scale" and with extreme cure of the details.

"This project - the managing director of VARD, Roy Reite has asserted - is totally online with our strategy of diversification turns to the income in the market of the shipment cruises, to the realization of synergies and an increase of the cooperation with our shareholder of Fincantieri majority".

"The announced agreement today - the managing director of Fincantieri Giuseppe Bono has commented - is of fundamental importance for the entire Fincantieri group. Our yards dedicated to the crocieristica production, in fact, could not have received these constructions before various years, visa the workload already procured, but through the synergies put in existence with Vard we have been equally in a position to answering to the requirements of Ponant, with which we have a consolidated relationship by now". "Thanks to this strategy - it has added Bono - we can moreover strengthen our leadership in the segment of the ships of average and small luxury dimension, let alone supply to the supply of fundamental parts of the ship realized in Italy, which the destined cabins and other areas to the passengers".