MSC Cruises has become the first international cruise line operating in Japan to receive a health and safety certification from the country's official Maritime Classification Society, ClassNK, a major step forward towards MSC Cruises' operational restart in the country, scheduled for April 2021.
MSC Cruises' industry-leading certification of its health and hygiene protocol for the Biosecurity Management System (COVID-19) now paves the way for the line to open sales to local residents in December for cruises based in Japan and begin working with the country's ports to prepare for the upcoming season.
Gianni Onorato, CEO of MSC Cruises, commented: “We are very pleased to have received this certification and are now confident that we will be able to restart our operations in Japan serving the local market in April 2021.”.
Junichi Hirata, General Manager of the Innovation and Sustainability Department at ClassNK, said: “This is the first important step in a long-term plan with MSC Cruises to resume Japanese cruise operations in the first half of 2021, and we will now work closely with the company towards that goal.”.
Hiroya Nakano, Director General of the Yokohama City Ports Bureau, said: “It is great news that MSC Cruises has received this ClassNK certificate of approval for its health and hygiene guidelines. The Port of Yokohama is committed to cooperating accordingly for the resumption of international cruises in spring 2021.”.
The operational health and hygiene protocols of the port authorities in Japan and MSC Cruises will also follow the guidelines established by JOPA, the Japan Ocean Passenger Ship Association.
MSC Bellissima, launched in 2019, will be deployed in Japan with its home port in Yokohama, to conduct six- to nine-night cruises in April, May, and June 2021. It is also scheduled to operate in the country during October and November 2021.
Mr. Onorato added: “Being the first international cruise line in Japan to receive this key compliance certification is further testimony to our robust and rigorous health and hygiene protocol that paved the way for the entire global industry when in August we became the first major line to resume cruise operations in the Mediterranean.
“We have now transported more than 30,000 customers safely and responsibly across the Mediterranean and can look forward to offering the same for our passengers living in Japan.
“Our industry-leading protocol, as well as the unique data sets collected through the operation of our two ships that called at Italy, Greece and Malta during the past few months, are currently being reviewed by authorities in other regions where the Company’s other ships are scheduled to restart.
“We believe, therefore, that this certification – in a country where the industry was at the center of attention at the start of the pandemic – and the confirmation by the Italian authorities, through their latest ministerial decree, that navigation can continue, will last a long time and is a way of demonstrating the confidence we have generated with the effective measures of the protocol and its rigorous application, for the benefit of passengers, crew and the communities we serve.”.
The European Classification Society, RINA, awarded the company's flagship, MSC Grandiosa, which is currently operating in the Mediterranean Sea, the additional classification of biosecure ship last month.
RINA had previously verified that MSC Cruises' health and hygiene protocol met and exceeded the high standards of the European Maritime Safety Agency (EMSA) and the European Centre for Disease Prevention and Control (ECDC) Joint Guidance, which incorporates additional health standards, including those of the EU Healthy Gateways Joint Action.
Verifying that the protocol was aligned with the guidance of the two key European authorities was a crucial part of the process to allow MSC Cruises to restart operations in the Mediterranean in August.
