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| © Virgin Voyages (rendering courtesy of Virgin Voyages) |
By Ana Figueroa, TravelPulse
Virgin Voyages has signed an agreement with Italian shipbuilder Fincantieri to add a fourth vessel to its fleet. The new ship will be delivered by late 2023 and is a sister ship to three vessels currently on order. They’re under construction at the firm’s Sestri Ponente shipyard in Genoa.
Plans call for the first three ships to debut in 2020, 2021 and 2022, respectively.
The 110,000 gross-ton ships will accommodate some 2,770 passengers in 1,400 staterooms. They'll carry a crew of approximately 1,150.
The first ship in the Virgin Voyages fleet has been named Scarlet Lady. Names for the other vessels have not been announced, although construction is continuing apace. A shipyard event in July included steel cutting ceremonies for ship number two. Virgin founder Richard Branson was in attendance, as was line CEO Tom McAlpin.
According to Fincantieri, the Virgin Voyages fleet will feature several innovative design elements. Renderings of the first ship were released in June, with additional details expected soon.
The line is priding itself on environmentally-friendly features that include an energy production system using the diesel engine’s waste heat.
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