Saint-Nazaire shipyard launches the "Fantastica"
It will be called Fantastica. The owner of Swiss-Italian MSC Cruises sign this morning at Saint-Nazaire, in the presence of Nicolas Sarkozy, the command of a cruise ship in shipbuilding group STX France (formerly Chantiers de l'Atlantique). The ship, the twelfth of its fleet, will be delivered in May 2012 for an amount of 575 million euros.
"Very stable, will ship with our other two ships, MSC Fantasia and MSC Splendida, the biggest and most luxurious cruise ship ever commissioned by a European ship owner to sail the Mediterranean, Le Figaro said Gianluigi Aponte, founding president of MSC Cruises it controls 100%. It will be a VIP class, with 99 staterooms, butler service and placeholders: lounge, restaurant, pool, spa and gym. "Feature 333.3 meters and a width of 38 meters maximum, Fantastica can reach speeds of 23.7 knots.Sailing from Marseilles, he will have 1751 cabins and can accommodate 4,000 passengers. This will increase by 10% the capacity of MSC Cruises, carrying 1.4 million passengers in 2013. Count from 750 to 2000 euros per week all inclusive, with a stopover day.
A letter of intent was signed in early March for this order, which required the support of the State. For STX France is a vital site. His yards idling. To avoid the worst, the government had to mobilize the French bank (Credit Agricole CIB BNP Paribas and Natixis), who were reluctant to grant the necessary funds (our edition of February 18). "The president has made sure that the site did not stop," says Gianluigi Aponte.MSC Cruises and enjoys the support of Coface, the French agency for export credit, which guarantees funding.
Another optional command ship
The owner will pay his command five times in twelve years. It will first check today, amounting to 115 million euros. First client of Chantiers de l'Atlantique, to whom he has already spent 10 orders, MSC Cruises claims the second place cruise in France and number four worldwide. His boss was pleased to have the most modern fleet in the world: if the oldest ship date of 1981, all others were built after 2002. The owner has already made "an option" to purchase STX for the next ship, a steamer of the same scale as the Fantastica. "We continue to invest, because the cruise is well. The industry has felt only slightly crisis, says Gianluigi Aponte.The Italians and the Koreans are eager to work with us. But I'm faithful to STX for over seven years. When I get on well with a supplier, I did not change for a few million euros! "
Last year, MSC Cruises has increased by about 30% of its turnover to 1.2 billion euros. Its net profit reached 60 million euros. "With an average price of 1200 euros or so, the cruise excellent value for money," says Gianluigi Aponte. It attracts more and more. "The younger clientele: the average age is now about forty years.
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