LONDON – The global scale of the coronavirus outbreak has laid up the cruise industry’s billion-dollar vessels, which a March estimate valued at more than US$167 billion.
Data company VesselsValue has launched a platform that provides valuations, data and satellite intelligence on passenger cruise ships.
According to the London-headquartered company, there are a total of 483 ships globally, of which 368 are currently plying the world’s waters, with 115 ships on order. The figures are valid as of 31 March 2020 and are intended to provide general information only.
VesselsValue spent the past 12 months collating and verifying its commercial and fleet databases and has launched its platform, which it updates daily with automated market valuations, demolition and fixed aged values up to 10 years back.
Currently, the world’s most valuable ship is Royal Caribbean International’s Symphony of the Seas at US$1.02 billion. The 5,402-passenger ship was built in March 2018.
But this is expected to be exceeded by the company’s fifth Oasis-class ship, Wonder of the Seas, valued at US$1.13 billion and scheduled to be delivered in 2021. RCI ordered the ship in February 2019 for a reported 1.10 billion euros, and the value had increased from when she was ordered until just before COVID-19.
With valuations exceeding US$1 billion each, cruise ships are one of the most expensive maritime assets in the world today.
To put a value to cruise ships, the company considers factors such as passenger to space ratio, total number of decks and accommodation, and number of swimming pools, casinos and restaurants among others.
The company classifies ships according to size categories of mega, large and small ships, as well as type: standard, luxury, expedition and expedition luxury.
Cruise owners by country and company
Unsurprisingly, almost half of the world’s cruise ships are owned by the United States, whose 202 ships account for 43% of the total global fleet and 48% of the market share in terms of value. The United Kingdom follows with 65 ships (14% by market share) and Switzerland with 30 ships (4% by market share).
Cruise giant Carnival Corp is the world’s largest cruise owner with 122 ships, which are collectively valued at US$55.46 billion. In second place with half the number of ships is Royal Caribbean International Group, whose 64 ships are estimated to be worth US$28.99 billion.
With the global outbreak of COVID-19, the billion-dollar cruise ships have become financial liabilities for some of the world’s cruise companies. Carnival Corporation has just had to secure a US$3 billion loan to cope with the crisis.
The crisis has also halted the sale and purchase market, save for sale and leaseback transactions. In January this year, prior to the crisis, the 150,000-gross-tonne Genting Dream was sold to a Chinese leasing company for US$900 million. VesselsValue estimates the ship is worth US$777 million today.
In 2019, cruise ships carried over 30 million passengers on voyages, making them one of the most highly commoditised assets on the water. The popularity of cruise holidays has risen exponentially, which is mirrored in the growth of cruise ships.