WHY IT RATES: The cruise industry continues to take steps toward being more environmentally aware.-Donald Wood, Breaking News Senior Writer.
Carnival Corporation & plc, the world's largest leisure travel company, its Germany-based AIDA Cruises brand and numerous representatives from politics, port-related businesses and tourism today celebrated the first-time arrival of the world's first cruise ship powered by liquefied natural gas (LNG) in Barcelona.
Upon arrival in Europe's biggest cruise port, AIDAnova - the newest vessel from AIDA Cruises, Germany's leader in cruising - was fueled for the first time in the Mediterranean with LNG, the world's cleanest burning fossil fuel. Currently, alongside Palma de Mallorca, Barcelona is the second start-and- end destination for AIDAnova's seven-day cruises in the Mediterranean. With Carnival Corporation's partnership with Shell Western LNG B.V. (Shell), the cruise ship will be regularly supplied with LNG at the Spanish metropolis.
Commissioned on Dec. 12, 2008, with four dual-fuel engines and three gas tanks on board, AIDAnova is the world's first cruise ship that will be operated in port and at sea with low-emission liquefied natural gas. Emissions of particulate matter and sulfur oxides are eliminated almost completely, while nitrogen oxides and carbon dioxide emissions are sustainably reduced. Two of the tanks each have a length of around 35 meters, a diameter of 8 meters and a capacity of 1,550 cubic meters. A third, smaller tank with a diameter of 5 meters, is 28 meters long and has a capacity of approximately 520 cubic meters.
It has been over 10 years since Carnival Corporation and AIDA Cruises started investing in LNG propulsion technology. Two additional ships of this new AIDA generation will join the AIDA fleet in 2021 and 2023. Carnival Corporation leads the industry with the adoption of LNG, with a total of 10 next-generation "green" cruise ships able to be powered by LNG in port and at sea on order with delivery dates between 2019 and 2025.
Highlights onboard AIDAnova, which marks an exciting new generation of ships for AIDA Cruises, include new culinary and entertainment offerings such as the Time Machine Restaurant, a street food mile with culinary treats and a floating TV studio. Guests can also enjoy the popular 360-degree Theatrium, the Four Elements adventure deck, complete with three water slides and a climbing garden under the dome of a retractable glass roof and the Beach Club for relaxing on board. AIDAnova also features a 3,500-square meter large wellness area, an outdoor fitness studio, a penthouse suite with two decks, individual staterooms, 17 restaurants and 23 bars.
Until the beginning of November 2019, AIDAnova will be sailing seven-day cruises, calling at some of the Germans' most popular travel destinations in the Mediterranean - Civitavecchia (Rome), La Spezia (Florence), Marseille and Barcelona.
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