Costa Smeralda is the first Costa vessel to be fuelled by liquefied natural gas, a breakthrough for the cruise industry as it will minimise overall environmental impact
Savona, 20 December 2019 - The new flagship is scheduled to sail from Savona on 21 December on its inaugural cruise in the Mediterranean.
With the advent of Costa Smeralda and the Costa Toscana sister-ship, the cruise liner plans to recruit 450 new staff in Italy in 2020.
Costa Smeralda is the first vessel of the Costa fleet fully powered both in port and at sea by LNG, a clean fuel set to herald a marked improvement in air quality, with the virtual elimination of sulphur dioxide emissions (zero emissions) and particulate matter (95-100% reduction), and with a substantial cut in nitrogen oxide emissions (by 85%) and CO2 (up to 20%).
Costa Smeralda is part of the Costa Group’s fleet expansion plan, with a total of seven new ships slated for delivery by 2023, in a total investment programme of over six billion euros. Five of the new vessels, including Costa Smeralda and the sister-ship Costa Toscana scheduled to enter service in 2021, will be fuelled by LNG. Costa Group is the first cruise liner in the world to have introduced the ground-breaking innovation in favour of sustainability, set to reduce sharply the entire fleet’s environmental impact. The Italian cruise company aims to achieve a 40% reduction in its fleet’s CO2 emissions by 2020, 10 years ahead of the target set by the IMO (International Maritime Organisation).
In recognition of its outstanding achievements in environmental performance, which exceeds legislative requirements currently in force, Costa Smeralda has been awarded by RINA (international classification society) the Green Plus, the highest rating in voluntary commitments that can be designated to environmentally compliant ships.
The new flagship, at 180,000 GT and built by the Meyer Turku shipyard in Finland, is scheduled to set sail from Savona on 21 December on her maiden voyage in the Mediterranean. The one-week itinerary includes calls at Marseilles, Palma de Mallorca, Civitavecchia and La Spezia.
