Norwegian shipbuilder and ship designer Ulstein Verft has signed a letter of intent (LOI) with an undisclosed company for the construction of one or more expedition cruise vessels of the design type ULSTEIN CX104.
Planned for delivery in 2019 and 2020, the vessels will be designed by Ulstein Design & Solutions to incorporate the X-BOW design and will be around 120 meters long and 20 meters wide.
As disclosed, the new ships will have “excellent” exploration facilities and polar capability. With environmentally friendly and sustainable solutions to be implemented, the vessels are expected to surpass the newest regulatory demands for taking passengers into Arctic and Antarctic waters.
According to the company, the signing of the LOI represents a “significant step” to bring these future expedition vessels to the market.
“The past few years we have worked strategically to target the exploration cruise market. This LOI proves that we are now confirming our position in this market. We are pleased to have been chosen as partner in this exciting project and we now look forward to turning this project into reality,” Gunvor Ulstein, CEO of Ulstein Group , commented.