The Silversea-owned luxurious Silver Cloud cruise ship, which offers Antarctic expeditions starting at EUR 14,000, sailed out of Palumbo Malta Shipyard following a complex 2-month drydock conversion.
The Maltese shipyard executed Silver Cloud’s overhaul from a standard cruise liner to an ice-class expedition ship within a short timespan. The job involved a team of nearly 1,000 people working round the clock in order to deliver the owner’s logistic plan; some 8 cranes, and Palumbo’s 300-ton mobile crane.
The job entailed complete overhaul of ship’s fin stabiliser, as well as the installation of structural ice belt around the ship which was created from over 200 tons of steel.
Work also included reinstalling the entire teak of the ship to adapt it for intense environments, as well as putting in new windows with heaters, creating a new bulbous bow specifically designed to take the impact of ice, and installing brand new navigation equipment due to indicate icebergs.