Fuel Supplement Charges to be Removed From All 2010 Voyages for Oceania Cruises and Regent Seven Seas Cruises. Criteria Set for Adjustments to 2009 Voyages.
Prestige Cruise Holdings, parent company of Oceania Cruises and Regent Seven Seas Cruises, has announced that effective November 10, 2008, fuel supplement charges will be eliminated from all voyages departing in 2010 and the company has established specific guidelines under which the fuel supplement may be reimbursed to guests sailing on voyages departing in 2009. For voyages departing in 2010, no fuel supplement will be charged on new reservations. For existing reservations on voyages departing in 2010, the fuel supplement charge will automatically be removed from the guests’ final payment balance. For voyages departing in 2009, the company will continue to apply a $15 per guest per day fuel supplement. Fuel supplement charge adjustments, if any, will be determined on a quarterly basis.
Refunds, in the form of shipboard credits, will be applied to all reservations to which a fuel supplement had previously been charged if the quarterly closing price on the New York Mercantile Exchange of West Texas Intermediate fuel is below $65 per barrel two weeks prior to the beginning of the upcoming calendar quarter. Frank Del Rio, Chairman of Prestige Cruise Holdings, stated that the company was implementing these changes due to the recent decline in fuel prices. “If oil stabilizes below $65 per barrel, we are confident that we can effectively eliminate the need to charge our guests a separate fuel supplement. However, we must see stability in fuel pricing on a mid- to long-term basis as there could still be significant volatility in the marketplace,” stated Del Rio.
The dates on which the price of West Texas Intermediate fuel will be measured and the quarters during which refunds may be applied are listed below. Fuel Price Determination Date Quarter of Possible Fuel Supplement Refunds December 18, 2008 First Quarter 2009 March 18, 2009 Second Quarter 2009 June 17, 2009 Third Quarter 2009 September 17, 2009 Fourth Quarter 2009 Prestige Cruise Holdings will continue to monitor the price of fuel and will retain the right to reinstate the fuel supplement charge at any time should market conditions warrant.