Madrid, November 26, 2018 – MSC Cruises, the world’s largest privately owned cruise company and industry leader in Europe, South America, South Africa, and the Gulf region, and Fincantieri, heir to Italy’s rich shipbuilding tradition and one of the world’s largest shipbuilding groups, today began construction of MSC Seashore, the first of two MSC Cruises Seaside EVO ships ordered from Fincantieri. At the ceremony held at Fincantieri’s shipyard in Monfalcone, Italy, Pierfrancesco Vago, Executive Chairman of MSC Cruises, and Giuseppe Bono, CEO of Fincantieri, cut the first piece of steel for this new ship.
MSC Seashore, with a gross tonnage of 169,400 GT, will enter service in spring 2021 and will be the first of its class, enriching MSC Cruises' Seaside-class offering with innovative new features, such as an additional aft lounge, an enhanced MSC Yacht Club service spanning three forward decks, specialty restaurants on Deck 8 for al fresco dining near the sea, more Jacuzzis, and 200 additional cabins, as well as more spacious public areas. The Seaside EVO-class ships will also be equipped with state-of-the-art environmental technology, including a selective catalytic reduction system, exhaust gas cleaning technology, advanced waste management and recycling systems, advanced water treatment systems, and an energy and heat recovery system, in addition to other technologies and measures to further improve energy efficiency.
Pierfrancesco Vago, CEO of MSC Cruises, stated: “With the Seaside class, we introduced one of the most innovative ship prototypes to the market (our fifth ship to date), setting a new standard in the industry for others to follow. Today, just one year after MSC Seaside entered service, we are taking this award-winning concept even further with the construction of an even more evolved and sophisticated ship. MSC Seashore exemplifies our commitment to bringing the most innovative and technologically advanced ships to sea, and will feature the latest and greatest maritime and environmental technology available.”
Giuseppe Bono, CEO of Fincantieri, stated: “The design of this ship perfectly reflects what Fincantieri stands for and what the group represents today in the international market and at an industrial level. MSC Seashore has been designed to leave no one indifferent: first, because of its size, as it will be the largest ship ever built in Italy, allowing us to further raise our management standards, even at the highest technological level. It is a prototype that we have developed based on a unique and highly successful platform, the proven Seaside.” Bono concluded: “Furthermore, we are very proud to contribute to the growth of MSC Cruises, a company that is becoming one of the leading operators in the market.”
Today’s event marked another milestone in MSC Cruises’ unprecedented 10-year development plan to build 17 new ships, four of which are currently under construction. MSC Seashore is the seventh ship to be built under this plan and will be the nineteenth built by MSC Cruises since its founding in 2003. Furthermore, the entry into service of the first Seaside EVO ship will take shipbuilding innovation to a new level of excellence, much like the introduction of the original Seaside prototype, which set a new industry standard.
MSC Seashore is inspired by MSC Cruises' vision of sailing in warm waters, enjoying a mild climate, and within a unique environment. It will follow the bold and innovative design of the Seaside class, with a promenade area on Deck 8, offering passengers countless options for dining and relaxing outdoors. Its name, like that of its predecessors MSC Seaside and MSC Seaview, is intended to reflect this new way of enjoying a cruise, first introduced on MSC Cruises' Seaside-class ships, bringing passengers as close as possible to the sea so they can experience it while sailing.
In addition to offering even more space and a more complete experience, the Seaside EVO ships will also be larger, with even more spacious common areas, more cabins, improved MSC Yacht Club service and capacity for up to 5,632 passengers.
MSC Seashore will be joined just 18 months later by a second ship, Seaside EVO, in the fall of 2022.
Technical specifications of the vessel
- Length/beam/height: 339 m/41 m/ 74 m
- Gross tonnage: 169,400 TRB
- Passengers: 5,632
- Crew: 1,648
- Passenger cabins: 2,270
- Maximum speed: 21.8 knots
- Delivery date: Spring 2021
- Nineteenth ship to join the MSC Cruises fleet since its founding in 2003
- First extended version of the Seaside class
- Labor hours required to build the ship: over 10 million
- Number of Fincantieri employees at the shipyard during construction: up to 4,000
- Sister ship: A second sister ship, the Seaside EVO, is planned for autumn 2022
