P&O Cruises marked an important construction milestone last week as it cut the first piece of steel for its newest ship being built at the Meyer Werft shipyard in Papenburg, the company said in its press release.
The steel cutting ceremony was attended by P &O Cruises senior vice president, Paul Ludlow; Carnival UK president Josh Weinstein and managing director of Meyer Werft, Tim Meyer.
Josh Weinstein said: “ This is the first time in 20 years that P&O Cruises has had a ship built by Meyer Werft and I’d like to thank everyone who has worked so hard to get us to the first stage in the life of this ground- breaking vessel. Meyer Werft has an enviable track record of producing genuinely innovative ships which also deliver tremendous levels of operational efficiency and we look forward to continuing our successful partnership over the next couple of years to this ship’s completion in 2020 and beyond.”
P&O Cruises will announce the name of the new ship on Thursday May 24 at 4pm on the company's Facebook page. This highly anticipated announcement comes as a result of a competition that P&O Cruises ran last year when it invited members of the public to suggest a suitable name for the ship. Over 30,000 submissions wer e received with a panel of experts making the final decision.
About P&O Cruises
P&O Cruises has a fleet of seven ships offering holidays tailored to British tastes combining genuine service, a sense of occasion and attention to detail, ensuring guests have the holiday of a lifetime, every time. Britannia, a design- led 143,000 ton ship, was named by HM The Queen on March 10 , 2015. Two new 180,000 ton LNG -powered ships are on order for delivery in 2020 and 2022.