A polar cruise ship was launched on Saturday at the Brodosplit shipyard in Croatia's second city of Split, ordered by the Dutch company Oceanwide Expeditions, with the shipyard's CEO, Tomislav Debeljak, describing the launch as a symbol of the dock's restructuring efforts, and a step forward in terms of technology.

The 108-metres-long ship which can accomodate nearly 200 passengers and can reach the speed of up to 15 knots, is the world’s first LR PC6 class polar ship, and will meet the requirements for the Lloyd’s Register for Polar Class 6 vessels.

The ship features 85 passenger cabins, offering various categories of hotel-level accommodation, from spacious suites to two-room and four-room cabins.

The design of the ship and all its technology were made by Brodosplit’s engineers, and are key to position the dock in the shipbuilding world in terms of know-how, the shipyard said.

“This ship is a symbol of Brodosplit’s restructuring, and is a step forward in terms of technology and organisation capabilities, because we have used new software, tools, and technology to build it, especially in terms of its fittings, as 80-85 percent of the ship has been equipped in the dry dock. This allowed for better quality construction, shorter building time, and lower construction price,” said Debeljak.

The contract to build the ship, worth €106.4 million, was covered by €68.1 million of government-issued guarantees approved in May.

I am very pleased with the quality of the ship, which is already quite equipped, with the propulsion system and accommodation fittings already installed, the owner of Oceanwide Expeditions, Wynand von Gessel, said at the launch. He added that the company had an excellent cooperation with the shipyard, and that the ship will receive its first passengers for polar cruises in June next year.

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