Carnival Corporation’s Costa Cruises says its vessel Costa Smeralda completed the first LNG bunkering operation in Italy.
The operation took place on October 25 in the port of La Spezia with the support of the Italian Coast Guard, Port Authority of Eastern Ligurian Sea, and local authorities.
Furthermore, energy giant Shell supplied the fuel via Anthony Veder’s bunkering vessel Coral Methane. Shell is the LNG supplier for Costa and its parent company, Carnival.
Carnival and its units are heavily investing in LNG as fuel for the cruise industry.
Costa Smeralda is the first LNG-powered ship in the Costa Cruises fleet. But the vessel will be followed by Costa Toscana, the sister ship scheduled to be delivered in late 2021.
Another LNG-powered vessel, AIDAnova from AIDA Cruises, has been operating within the Costa Group fleet since 2018. This vessel will also be joined by two sister ships by 2023.
Additionally, a third LNG-powered ship named Iona recently joined Carnival’s P&O Cruises fleet.