Construction work started in Papenburg on the first new cruise ship for the British company, Saga Cruises. On February 28, Meyer Werft began its steel-cutting process for Spirit of Discovery, the first ship to be delivered summer 2019.
CEO of Saga Group, Lance Batchelor, and Managing Director of Meyer Werft, Tim Meyer, pressed the start button on computer-operated cutting machine which processed the first sheets of steel for the newbuild. This marked the start of ship’s production.
The project reactivated Building Dock I of Meyer Werft, which is not being used to manufacture new ships. Three cruise ships will be delivered to various clients in 2019-2020, as opposed to the 2 ships that were planned.
Spirit of Discovery is the first of 2 ships for the successful cruise line. The ships each feature an overall length of 236m, a width of 31.2m and a tonnage of 58,250 GT. A total of 999 guests can be accommodated. Another new vessel follows in summer 2020.
The newbuilds will be tailored to the English cruise market with a new design to make them stand out in port, and their interior and technology will set brand new standards.