MSC Cruises released its 2023 Sustainability Report with a performance review of the 12 months in the areas of environment, social and governance.

 The report also includes information on the line’s sister company Explora Journeys, as well as data tables including operations, emissions, water, waste, headcount and gender distribution.

 Pierfrancesco Vago, executive chairman of MSC Group’s Cruise Division, said: “We began publishing an annual Sustainability Report in 2019, making this our fifth report. During that time, our commitment to reaching our goals remains as strong as ever. Our approach to environmental, social, and governance issues has become more sophisticated as we have employed more ways to manage our activities in a more dynamic manner. This reflects our passion to not just align with stakeholder expectations and navigate a complex regulatory landscape, but to make meaningful measurable changes that have a long-term positive impact on our guests, our employees and our planet.

“We remain fully committed to our goal of net zero greenhouse gas emissions by 2050 in line with the International Maritime Organization’s strategy but achieving net zero emissions cannot be done alone. We continue to work extensively with our close partners including the shipyards, technology providers, fuel providers and many others and I am pleased with the progress we as an industry are making. We continue to advocate to be regulated in a fair way, which does not discriminate against our industry.”

 Highlights include: 

• Fleet carbon intensity improved by 6.5 percent compared to 2022.
• The second liquified natural gas (LNG)-powered ship launched, the MSC Euribia, with a net zero greenhouse gas (GHG) emissions voyage from France to Denmark.
• Successful shore power connections numbered 44 for the line’s ships at eight ports in Norway, Germany, the UK and Malta. 
• Freshwater management produced 87.2 percent of the fleet’s onboard water needs – more than 6.4 million cubic meters – through desalination. This resulted in the reduction of onboard water consumption from 226 liters per guest day in 2022 to 187 liters in 2023, down by 17.2 percent.
• Collaborated with nature intelligence and environmental DNA specialists NatureMetrics to analyze seawater samples from three vessels, identifying more than 4,000 different animal species using DNA identification techniques.

The report also reveals that in 2023, MSC Cruises’ fleet of 22 ships hosted 4,081,393 guests, completed 385 itineraries across 102 countries, and provided 2,150 shore excursions.