Ponant News

Seatrium has secured a series of repair and upgrade contracts worth an aggregate of about S$170 million ($131 million). All works are slated for completion by the first quarter of 2026.Seatrium continues to reinforce Singapore’s status as a premier hub for cruise ship upgrades and retrofits. Leveraging its high-quality workmanship and engineering capabilities, the Group attracts a high proportion of repeat business and has been a trusted partner for various major global cruise ship operators.

The Cruise Lines International Association (CLIA) reported in September that the number of member cruise line ships with the ability to use shore power has nearly doubled since 2018.Today, 166 ships are able to plug in at port, a 12% increase from the prior year. These ships represent 58% of the fleet and 65% of capacity.By 2036, 273 ships that can connect are expected to be in service.As part of the EU’s Fit for 55 decarbonization regulations, by 2030 major ports in Europe will be required to have shore power…

French engineering specialist GTT has teamed up with Bloom Energy and Ponant Explorations Group to develop an integrated energy system combining solid oxide fuel cells (SOFC) powered by LNG with marine carbon capture, aiming to significantly cut onboard emissions for future cruise operations.The system is slated to be installed on Ponant’s Swap2Zero cruise vessel by 2030. The vessel will be propelled by wind-assisted technology and fuel cells, and the new system is designed to cover the ship’s hotel load - including lighting…

Seatrium has secured multiple contracts for repairs and upgrades, with a total value of S$100 million ($760 million) from various long-standing partners and regular customers.The projects will be completed by Q12025 and include carbon capture and storage (CCS) retrofits, major repairs on yachts, cruise ships, LNG carriers, offshore vessels, tankers as well as damage repairs.Year to date, Seatrium has secured two CCS retrofit projects. Announced earlier this year, the first project is for Solvang ASA, Norway, involving the ethylene carrier Clipper Eris which is scheduled for November 2024.

Ponant’s Le Commandant Charcot became the first cruise ship to reach the North Pole of Inaccessibility on September 12.The North Pole of Inaccessibility is the point on the Arctic Ocean that is furthest from land. First described in 1909 by the Russian polar explorer Alexander Koltchak, the exact geographic coordinates were established in 2013 by Jim McNeill with the help of NASA and satellites: 85°48’ North, 176°09’ East. It is located at 1,465km (910 miles) from Utqiasuk in Alaska…

Navalrocha Shipyard reported growth in key target markets, including LPG and Product Carriers, after recording one of its strongest ever half-year performances.With more than 30 projects delivered to date, Navalrocha is on course for another record-breaking year having completed projects with wide variety of commercial ships. In particular, the Lisbon yard is ramping up activity to support Iberia’s growing offshore renewables sector having serviced a range of Offshore Support…

Finnish companies have designed about 80 percent of the world’s icebreakers, and about 60 percent of them have been built by Finnish shipyards.Finland is home to a strong and vibrant maritime cluster, with a mix of large, medium and small shipyards, as well as a deep pool of marine engineering expertise and a broad network of vessel equipment suppliers.As one of the world’s northernmost countries, Finland is also home to a fleet of icebreakers that keep imports and exports flowing through its harbors, even during the coldest winter months.

Digital network provider Marlink has completed the integration of internet services on Ponant’s Le Commandant Charcot to provide three LEO solutions for the ship’s polar itineraries.The installation is the first in the maritime sector to combine Marlink’s Sealink GEO VSAT, with Starlink, Eutelsat OneWeb and Iridium LEO services. The agreement with Ponant reflects Marlink’s ability to provide guaranteed throughput VSAT services with emerging high speed, low latency LEO services.The…

Digital solutions company Marlink has partnered with LEO internet operator Eutelsat OneWeb to provide digital connectivity solutions to cruise company Ponant.Ponant will deploy the Eutelsat OneWeb service on its polar exploration icebreaker Le Commandant Charcot, providing guests and crew with high throughput and low latency internet access across the vessel’s itinerary.Leveraging Marlink’s expertise in smart hybrid networks, the bandwidth delivered by Eutelsat OneWeb will enable Ponant’s seamless collaboration between the ship’s bridge, engineering crew and shore teams.

Ponant has committed to a unique transoceanic ship design, Swap2Zero, that combines six new energy technologies.The ship is expected to be ready by 2030. Ponant has partnered with naval architect Stirling Design International, and discussions are ongoing to select a shipyard. The sail technology has not yet been decided on, with Ponant considering Ayro Oceanwings or Solid Sail technology.“By 2030, our future ship aims to have zero greenhouse gas emissions when sailing, manoeuvring, in port or at anchor. Her carbon footprint will be reduced throughout her life cycle.

PONANT’s new science-focused exploration vessel has started collecting Arctic Ocean data with -4H-JENA engineering’s FerryBox multi-parameter water measurement system on board.The system is now being used to evaluate the role of global warming and glacial meltwater on the rising level of oxygen in the oceans aboard PONANT’s Le Commandant Charcot, the world’s only luxury icebreaker, a hybrid-electric vessel powered by liquified natural gas.A unique concept with minimal environmental impact due to her green energy and propulsion systems…

PONANT’s polar exploration cruise vessel Le Commandant Charcot, which recently became the first to reach the geographic North Pole, has signed up for ABB MarineCare services to ensure safe and sustainable operations. The 10-year service agreement provides round-the-clock remote support, diagnostics and condition monitoring, as well as preventive and planned maintenance, and the critical spare parts. The service scope also includes warranty for the ship's energy storage system…

Marlink is supporting PONANT’s first polar exploration ship Le Commandant Charcot, with data and voice connectivity, aiming to create a seamless communication experience for guests.Le Commandant Charcot became the first vessel of her kind to reach the geographic North Pole on September 6, 2021, during sea trials in preparation for her maiden voyage later this year. Marlink provides a hybrid network solution, combining Sealink dual C- and Ku-band VSAT connectivity, GEO and LEO L-band connectivity and a high-data volume LEO store & forward capability.

Shipbuilder and designer Vard on Monday said it delivered the newly built expedition cruise ship Le Commandant Charcot for the French cruise company Ponant.The electric hybrid polar exploration vessel propelled with liquefied natural gas (LNG) has been developed by Ponant, Stirling Design International, Aker Arctic and Fincantieri subsidiary Vard. The vessel, classified as Polar Class 2, is specially designed to bring passengers to discover the polar world’s extreme unexplored lands such as the geographic North Pole (90 degrees North Latitude), the Weddell Sea, the Ross Sea and Peter I Island.

ABB Marine & Ports said it has developed a new Blended Learning program for Azipod propulsion in response to customers’ requests for safe and efficient training of crews during global travel restrictions.The new program combines traditional classroom training with instructor-led lessons via conference call, assignments and e-learning available on the ABB Marine Academy digital learning platform; remote simulator training developed with support from the Aboa Mare Maritime Academy and Training Center in Turku…

Bureau Veritas (BV) is working with PONANT, a cruise company with a fleet of 11 smaller-scale ships, to help implement effective infection prevention measures.PONANT will use a suite of solutions developed by BV for passenger ship clients to address biological risks, as posed by COVID-19 and other infections. ‘Restart your Business with BV’ provides procedures and measures to protect passengers, company personnel, and other stakeholders as operations are resumed, helping ensure that appropriate health and safety standards are put in place.Matthieu de Tugny…

VARD has announced a contract to build 2 new-generation luxury expedition cruise vessels for PONANT.The new units, due for delivery both in 2022, will represent an evolution of the “PONANT EXPLORERS” class vessels. They will be operated in the South Pacific areas for “PAUL GAUGUIN CRUISES” brand as well as the eponymous ship acquired recently by PONANT, thus bringing the number of ships under this brand to 3. They will be built by VARD group’s production network, and they will…

Italian shipbuilder Fincantieri has signed a memorandum of agreement (MoA) to design and construct two new-generation luxury expedition cruise ships for French cruise operator Ponant.The MoA also envisages an option for one further sister-ship. The finalization of the contract is subject to the fulfillment of technical and financial conditions.In the past, Fincantieri has already built for Ponant 4 ships in Ancona, "Le Boréal", "L'Austral", "Le Soléal", and "Le Lyrial", delivered respectively in 2010, 2011, 2013, and 2015.VARD, Fincantieri's Norwegian subsidiary, active in the design and shipbuilding of expedition cruise vessels, has built in 2018 and 2019 four units of the "Ponant Explorers" class and will deliver the last two of the series in 2020.

Finnish engineering company Aker Arctic Technology Oy said that its Arctic condensate tanker Boris Sokolov has now been transporting gas condensate from Sabetta to various ports in Europe for more than half a year.Last spring, Aker Arctic’s expedition team carried out full-scale ice trials on the vessel based on our Aker ARC 212 design.In order to evaluate the performance of the vessel, the fully-laden Boris Sokolov deviated from her regular route and headed towards the Siberian coast to seek ice conditions that were closer to the tanker’s maximum independent icebreaking capability. The analysis of the results is currently ongoing.The new Chinese icebreaking polar research vessel…

While nothing lasts forever, the cruise industry – and particularly the ‘expedition’ cruise sector – remain on a historic run with no indication of a near-term slowdown.The leisure travel sector, of which expedition cruising is a part, offers numerous possibilities for delivering new “experiences” unlike industrial shipping businesses (or even conventional ferry and passenger transport), which can only grow as fast as the demand in a particular sector.Though there is no precise definition of “expedition”…

The main cruise ship operators in French waters have agreed on measures to limit pollution caused by their vessels, including hooking up to the power grid instead of keeping their engines running during stopovers.The "Blue Charter" agreement signed in Marseille by Costa Cruises, MSC Cruises, Royal Carribean Cruises and Ponant also pledged to use less-polluting fuel when manoeuvring in harbours as well as other measures to reduce emissions.The four signatories transport 95% of the passengers and account for 85% of the stopovers in Marseille…

French cruise company Ponant has received its new cruise ship, Le Bougainville, bringing its fleet to eight vessels.The ship, which is the third in the Ponant Explorers series, left Søvik in Norway on the morning of 8 April and she is currently sailing to Spain to start her maiden cruise on 15 April from Malaga.Le Bougainville will be officially inaugurated on 4 June.“A dream, firm beliefs, energy and boldness were what created Ponant. It is by drawing on those roots and our expertise that Ponant is preparing today to meet the challenges of tomorrow, to surprise and delight our guests. I wanted the ships in the Ponant Explorers series to embody the very best in expedition cruise.

Vard delivered Le Bougainville, its third expedition cruise vessel for Ponant. The 131m long, 184-passenger vessel, is the third in the series designed and built by VARD, following on from the delivery of Le Laperouse in June 2018 and Le Champlain in October. Vard Søviknes is now working on a fourth sister ship, Le Dumont-d’Urville, scheduled for delivery to French-owned PONANT in June this year.Created to be intimate in nature, with just 92 state rooms and suites, all of which boast balconies or private terraces…