NCL Limits New F3 Series to Two

News came this week from France's St. Nazaire -- home of Aker Yards France and a major location for new cruise ship building -- that Norwegian Cruise Line, which already has a firm order for two versions of an entirely new series of mega-ship, will not pick up an option for a third. What makes this puzzling is in the timing of the announcement. That's because just last month NCL announced a major new partnership with Apollo Management, LP -- which owns Oceania. Apollo has invested $1 billion in the company that would, in part, be used to actually fuel further expansion.

Indeed, according to the official NCL/Apollo press release, "the new investment, in the form of common stock alongside NCL's existing sole shareholder, Star Cruises ("Star"), is designed to strengthen NCL's balance sheet and its ability to continue to expand what is fast-becoming the youngest fleet in the industry, and to evolve further the company's successful Freestyle Cruising concept first introduced in 2000."

The series of twins, dubbed F3, has already sparked much interest. The ships, measuring 150,000 tons and carrying 4,200 passengers, are the biggest ever commissioned by NCL. While few details have yet been announced, one major new feature has been revealed: All staterooms will have balconies. That's a first-ever for the industry, at least in terms of big-ship cruise lines. As well, the new ship design will, according to NCL, "offer 60 percent more passenger space than the largest ships built so far by NCL, and will use that space to introduce a major leap forward in the flexibility and variety of the cruise experience ...."

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