Wednesday, January 18, 2023 - 10:56 by ce-press
P&O Cruises’ Arvia, the second British cruiseship to be powered by liquefied natural gas (LNG), made her debut in Lisbon on January 3 on a 14-day maiden voyage.
She is one of the 28 ships being constructed up to 2028 being powered by alternative fuels. Sistership Iona, debuted in Lisbon in October 2021, the first in the P&O Cruises’ Excel class. LNG is currently the lowest emission fossil fuel available in the marine industry.
During her stay in Lisbon, the usual welcome ceremony took place where the port authority, the cruise terminal operator Lisbon Cruise Port, the customs and the harbour master joined Captain Robert Camby onboard. Tugboats from Portugs escorted the ship alongside the Tagus river.
“It is a great honour to welcome such a technologically-advanced ship since the environmental issues are one of the top priorities of the port authority for the next years,” said Ana Lourenco, cruise and mega yacht department Port of Lisbon.
“The project to implement onshore power; campaigns to monitori water and air quality in the terminal area; and participation in a study ‘Determination of the Impact of Cruise Ship Traffic on Urban Air Quality’, promoted by CLIA Europe in partnership with Universitat Rovira I Virgili from Tarragona, are some of the actions that are being taken regarding the environmental policy to be put in place.”
This year the port is expecting 350 calls and about 600,000 passengers. Twenty-four ships will be calling for the first time, including Arvia, Ambience, Scenic Eclipse 2, Norwegian Breakaway, Seabourn Venture, Costa Firenze, Viking Saturn, Disney Dream, Silver Nova and Regal Princess.
New companies to Lisbon will be Ambassador Cruise Line, Compagnie Francaise de Croisieres and Vantage Travel Cruise Line.
