The KfW IPEX-Bank of Germany has announced that it is financing the cruise ship commissioned at Meyer Werft last October by Star Cruises. The agreement was signed this week.
The purchase price for the ship is around 700 million euro. The financing to the tune of just under EUR 600 million will be paid in US dollars and has a term of 12 years from delivery.
KfW IPEX-Bank has structured the overall financing and is providing the entire loan amount together with Crédit Agricole Corporate and Investment Bank and the Singapore branch of DNB Bank ASA. The financing is backed by export credit insurance issued by the German Federal Government (covered by Euler Hermes) and encompasses the Commercial Interest Reference Rate (CIRR) for ships, which is determined by the OECD.
“With this high-volume financing, we are underlining both our expertise in structuring within the cruise ship industry and our role as one of the world’s leading players in ship financing. We are also helping to support German exporters, especially North Germany as a shipbuilding location,” explained Christian K. Murach, the responsible management board member at KfW IPEX-Bank.
The new vessel has a gross tonnage of about 150,000, more than 1,600 passenger cabins on 18 decks and a length of approximately 330 meters. Consequently, it will not only be the largest ship in Star Cruises’ fleet; it will also be counted among the biggest cruise ships based out of Asia.
As a modern cruise ship tailored to the Asian market, it will feature in particular an extensive range of entertainment and shopping facilities. Around 3,100 Meyer Werft employees and some 20,000 employees of suppliers and partner companies are all collaborating on the project.
With delivery scheduled for the fourth quarter of 2016, Star Cruises is set to increase its fleet to eight ships. The company recently commissioned Meyer to construct another (sister) ship, which is to be brought into service in the fourth quarter of 2017.
