March 17, 2015: ABB, a global leader in power and automation technology, has been awarded a contract worth $60 million to deliver Azipod ® propulsion and power systems to two Norwegian Cruise Line vessels. The Breakaway-Plus class cruise ships will be built by MEYER WERFT of Germany and delivered in Q2 2018 and Q4 2019.
The new 164,000 gt vessels will be equipped with ABB’s fuel-saving Azipod XO electrical propulsion systems, which are already featured on several of Norwegian Cruise Line’s new vessels: the top-of-the-line ‘Norwegian Breakaway’ and ‘Norwegian Getaway’ as well as the larger Breakaway-Plus class ships, Norwegian Escape and Norwegian Bliss, currently under construction at MEYER WERFT. ABB will also deliver complete electric power plants, generators and drives to the ships.
“ABB designed the Axipod XO concept to reduce ship lifecycle costs and increase the profitability of vessels, and this repeat order with MEYER WERFT, the world’s leading cruise ship builder, is a validation to the customer value our flagship propulsion solution delivers”, says Heikki Soljama, Managing Director for ABB’s Marine and Ports Business. “We value the longstanding relationship with Norwegian Cruise Line and are dedicated to earning their confidence in the reliability and quality of our solutions.”
