Helsinki Shipyard Oy, having received bids for the auction of NB518 announced that Swan Hellenic has been awarded the tender, according to the company's release.
Helsinki Shipyard has exercised the right to sell the ship by tender, provided for by the shipbuilding contract, after the original buyer failed to take delivery of the ship. The auction ended at midnight on Friday the 9th of December and was satisfactory for Helsinki Shipyard, which analyzed the bids and declared Swan Hellenic the winner.
The Shipyard and Swan Hellenic will now enter into a new agreement for the completion of the vessel, which is scheduled to be delivered to Swan Hellenic in March 2023, in time to start cultural expedition cruises of the Mediterranean from the beginning of April as planned.
Helsinki Shipyard Oy is located in the capital of Finland and specializes in shipbuilding technology and building of special vessels for demanding conditions and routes. The shipyard has a long tradition and unmatched expertise in designing and building of icebreakers and other high ice-class vessels for operations in cold environment. In addition to the arctic know-how, our specialization covers also passenger ferries and cruise ships.
Swan Hellenic was relaunched in July 2020. Building on its British roots, the new company has a global cultural cruising outlook. SH Minerva and SH Vega, two new 5-star Polar Code PC 5 expedition cruise ships with ice-strengthened hulls, respectively launched in December 2021 and arriving in July 2022, each accommodates 152 guests. A slightly larger PC 6 ice-class vessel, SH Diana, accommodating 192 guests, will be arriving in early 2023.