Business Sectors
Business Sectors
Events
Contents
Register to read more articles.
Explora Journeys adds first LNG-powered cruise ship under €3.5Bn newbuild programme
MSC’s luxury lifestyle and ocean travel brand adds third luxury cruise ship of six newbuildings ordered from Fincantieri
Explora Journeys, MSC Group’s ocean luxury brand, has taken delivery of its largest and first LNG-fuelled cruise ship, Explora III, from Fincantieri’s Sestri Ponente shipyard in Genoa, Italy.
Among the company officials on hand for the delivery ceremony at Fincantieri’s Genoa shipyard were Pierfrancesco Vago, executive chairman of the Cruise Division of MSC Group, Anna Nash, president of Explora Journeys, Biagio Mazzotta, president of Fincantieri, Pierroberto Folgiero, CEO and MD of Fincantieri, and Luigi Matarazzo, general manager of Fincantieri’s Merchant Ships Division.
Maya Aponte, daughter of MSC Group president and CEO Diego Aponte and Elâ Soyuer Aponte, served as the ship’s godmother during the ceremony, breaking the traditional bottle of champagne on the vessel’s hull.
The third of six 900-passenger cruise ships under a more than €3.5Bn (US$4.0Bn) newbuilding programme, Explora III represents the next phase in the Aponte family’s build-out of its five-year-old luxury lifestyle and ocean travel brand.
It was something that Ms Nash highlighted during the ceremony, when she said the ship was part of the company’s goal to “redefine ocean travel through thoughtful innovation, exceptional design and the intuitive hospitality that sits at the heart of the Explora Journeys experience.”
That can be seen immediately when you compare the vessel’s size, outfitting, and engine-room technology. While the ship has approximately the same passenger capacity – approximately 900 - as its previously delivered sisters, Explora I and Explora II, it is 1 m wider and 20 m longer, offering more space for dining options and creature comforts, including a second Owner’s Residence, designed by renowned architect and designer Patricia Urquiola, an expanded collection of Ocean Penthouses and Ocean Residences, and reimagined Ocean Wellness facilities that bring spa and fitness together in one space.
Crunching the numbers, total public space on Explora I and Explora II is 16,800 m2, while Explora III and Explora IV will have 17,570 m2, giving the latter vessels a roomy feel.
“With each new ship, we expand our ability to offer guests new perspectives on the world through increasingly immersive experiences in the destinations we visit,” commented Mr Vago.
In the engine room
Down in the engine room, Explora III is equipped with LNG dual-fuel engines, a switch from the first two ships in the class that will be carried forth in the remaining four ships in the newbuild programme. This switch will provide the ship with fuel flexibility, allowing it to transition to bioLNG and synthetic LNG when those renewable fuels become available at commercial scale, underpinning the MSC Cruise Division’s wider commitment to reduce the environmental impact of its marine operations and work towards net-zero greenhouse gas emissions by 2050. Operating on fossil LNG will reduce SOx by 99%, NOx by 85%, particulate matter by 98% and CO2 reductions of between 14 and 21%, according to some studies.
Zero emissions will also be possible in port, thanks to a shore power connection system that will allow the vessel to turn off its auxiliary engines and tap into the electricity grid while berthed.
Explora III’s sustainability credentials are promoted through several voluntary notations awarded by RINA. The ship has received the notation Green Plus for its high environmental performance and the Comfort Noise and Vibration notation for the low noise and vibration levels that ensure maximum comfort on board. Additionally, its low underwater radiated noise levels are recognised by a Dolphin notation, and it is certified according to the Polar Code C, which allows it to sail in the polar regions.
Explora Journeys will push sustainability technology even further in the last two vessels in the newbuilding programme. Both Explora V and Explora VI will incorporate the capability to use fuel cells, making it possible to achieve net-zero emissions underway.
Fincantieri’s subsidiary, Isotta Fraschini, produced its first liquefied hydrogen fuel cells this year and incorporated the technology in its first cruise ship, Viking Libra.
Fincantieri has begun construction on the last three ships in the series, with deliveries set for 2027 and 2028.
As for Explora III, after its inaugural five-night Mediterranean voyage on 24 July departing from Genoa, it will sail from Barcelona on 3 August 2026 on its seven-night Maiden Journey to Lisbon, launching an inaugural season spanning Northern Europe, Iceland, Greenland and North America. In 2027, it will debut in Alaska.
Related to this Story
Events
Maritime Regulations Webinar Week
16 Dec 2025
GMT - ONLINE
Floating energy: successfully unlocking stranded gas using FLNGs and FSRUs
24 Feb 2026GMT - ONLINE
© 2026 Riviera Maritime Media Ltd.
