German Bank to Finance LNG Cruiseship
German government-owned trade-financing bank, KfW IPEX-Bank, is to provide €786mn ($924mn) financing towards the construction at a German shipyard of a new LNG dual fuel cruise ship for its 'long-standing customer' Carnival Corporation.
The Frankfurt-based bank said July 6 it is handling the roles of book runner, initial mandated lead arranger, facility agent,and export credit agency (ECA) agent for the financing. Its plan is to syndicate up to 80% of the €786mn financing, which will have a 12-year term from the date of delivery; it is backed by 'Hermes' export credit insurance issued by the German government.
“With this financing we are once again demonstrating our competence in arranging tailored financing for our customers in the cruise segment,” said Andreas Ufer, a board director at KfW IPEX-Bank.
The vessel will be built by Meyer Werft in Papenburg, near Emden in northwest Germany. It will have a low-emission, dual-fuel engine using LNG and marine diesel but will normally run on LNG, the bank said. It is scheduled for delivery in May 2022 and will be able to accommodate 5,200 guests.
As of February 2018, US-based London-listed Carnival Corporation has agreements in place with leading German and Finnish shipbuilders Meyer Werft and Meyer Turku to build nine LNG-powered cruise ships for delivery between 2018 and 2023. (Photo shows KfW offices in Frankfurt, courtesy of the bank.)