Carnival Corporation’s P&O Cruises said a keel-laying ceremony was held for its second LNG-powered vessel at the Meyer Werft shipyard in Papenburg.
The 345 meters long LNG-powered ship Arvia is the sister vessel to Iona, also built by the German shipbuilder.
According to the statement, the keel-laying block weighs 570 tons, is 11.3 meters long, 42.10 meters wide, and 11.81 meters high. Meyer Weft lifted the block with an 800-ton crane.
The next steps are the completion of the block assembly of the aft part of the ship in the dock and further outfitting of the vessel, P&O Cruises said.
Carnival Corporation’s unit expects the delivery of Arvia in December 2022.
Its maiden voyage would be on a route to the Canary Islands followed by a winter season in the Caribbean, the firm said.
Upon delivery, Arvia will join Iona as P&O Cruises’ second LNG-powered ship and eighth for Carnival Corporation.
The LNG-powered newbuild has 16 decks and can accommodate around 5,200 passengers.
To remind, its sister vessel Iona left Southampton on its maiden voyage in August last year.
Meyer Werft delivered the LNG-powered vessel to the UK-based cruise operator in October 2020 but it waited for its debut for a long time due to the ongoing Covid-19 pandemic.
