The final two Prima-plus class newbuilds for Norwegian Cruise Line will be ready to run green methanol, according to the company.

Norwegian Cruise Line Holdings said in its fourth quarter and year-end 2022 earnings press release it had modified newbuild contracts for the final two Prima-plus Class ships to re-configure the ships to accommodate the use of green methanol as an alternative fuel source in the future.

“While additional modifications will be needed in the future to fully enable the use of methanol in addition to traditional marine fuel on these ships, this reinforces the company’s commitment to decarbonization and represents an important step forward in the pursuit of net zero greenhouse gas emissions by 2050,” NCLH said in a statement.

Delivery dates from Fincantieri for the two 3,550-guest vessels are scheduled in 2026 and 2027.

In addition, Norwegian recently successfully completed tests of biofuel blends on three additional ships, the Norwegian Star, Norwegian Sun and Norwegian Epic.

All three ships were tested with a blend of approximately 30% biofuel and 70% MGO which was supplied in collaboration with World Fuel Services as well as GoodFuels for Norwegian Sun and PRIO for Norwegian Star and Norwegian Epic.