Several colorful umbilical cords, as thick as tree trunks, hang down from the bow of the ship and supply the new building with energy. The “Norwegian Prima” has already been painted from the outside and towed to the outfitting quay of the Fincantieri shipyard. But whoever enters the interior of the steel colossus enters the bowels of a creature that first wants to become a cruise ship.
The intestines are bare, everything looks like it has burst open: open ceilings with hanging cable loops and overflowing pipes, a tangle on the floor. It smells of cold steel, paint and glue. Mechanics stand on scaffolding with their glaring work lamps and potter around, milling machines screech, sparks fly.
It is hard to imagine that this ship is to set sail on April 15th for a first test drive in the Adriatic. “We have already laid four million meters of cables,” says Antonio Quintano, the shipyard boss, during the tour. For Fincantieri, the “Prima” is not just any new build, but the prototype of a new class of ship.
The “Norwegian Prima” is just the beginning
The US shipping company based in Miami Norwegian Cruise Line (NCL), previously a customer of Meyer Werft in Papenburg, has ordered six units. A new ship is commissioned every year until 1927. The “Norwegian Viva”, which is currently being built in the neighboring dry dock, is to follow in June 2023.
In contrast to the ships in the Breakaway Plus Class, such as the 165,157 GT “Norwegian Escape” from NCL with cabins for 4266 passengers, the new ship type does not follow the trend towards even larger megaliners, but is smaller: the tonnage has been increased 142,500 GT reduced with space for 3250 cruise guests.
Art coming soon for 6 million US dollars on board the “Norwegian Prima”: Standing in front of a picture by graffiti artist Manuel Di Rita are (from left to right) Veronika Bahnmann from NCL, sculptor Alexander Krivosheiw, curator Sarah Hall and Manuel Di Rita, also ” named Peeta.
© Till Bartels
Instead of quantity, NCL focuses on quality, not only in the variety of restaurants and the works of art – including sculptures by Alexander Krivosheiv on board. New ground is also being broken when it comes to space: the space-to-guest ratio on the “Norwegian Prima” is 44.3 PSR (Passenger Space Ratio) – compared to “Mein Schiff 1” (PSR 37.4), “Aida Bella” (PSR 32.2) or “Costa Smeralda” (PSR 28.1).
Today it takes a good deal of imagination that the new building will set sail for the first time in just a few weeks while the interior design is taking shape. In the summer, the ship will be handed over to NCL after a planned construction period of 27 months.
On August 27, the “Prima” will be christened by singer Katy Perry in an unusual place, in the port of Iceland’s capital, Reykjavik. The christening name was not chosen particularly well, because there is already a cruise ship with almost the same name, the “Prima” from Aida Cruises, which was christened in Hamburg in 2016.
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– “Norwegian Escape”: Check out what this mega ship looks like from the inside!