The U.S. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) has dropped its controversial “No Sail” order in favour of a so-called Conditional Sailing Order.
In short, the “No Sail” order has been lifted and the industry will work with the CDC on a realistic, phased-in return to service.
“The initial phases will consist of testing and additional safeguards for crew members,” the CDC said in a statement posted to its website.
“CDC will ensure cruise ship operators have adequate health and safety protections for the crew while these cruise ship operators build the laboratory capacity needed to test future passengers. Subsequent phases will include simulated voyages to test cruise ship operators’ ability to mitigate COVID-19 risk, certification for ships that meet specific requirements, and a phased return to cruise ship passenger voyages in a manner that mitigates COVID-19 risk among passengers, crew members, and U.S. communities.
“These phases are subject to change based on public health considerations and cruise ship operators’ demonstrated ability to mitigate COVID19 risk. CDC will issue additional orders as needed that will be published in the Federal Register and technical instructions that will be subsequently posted on CDC’s website.”
The framework allows for individual cruise lines to progress through phases at variable paces, according to the agency, and enables cruise lines successfully implementing public health measures to return to passenger operations more quickly while others by necessity may move more slowly.
The framework not only encourages cruise lines that are more successful at mitigating the spread of COVID-19 but provides a realistic timeline that anticipates COVID-19 continuing to be present and affecting cruise ship travel, the CDC said.
The phased-in approach will include (1) establishment of laboratory testing of the crew onboard cruise ships in U.S. waters; (2) 15 simulated voyages designed to test a cruise ship operators’ ability to mitigate COVID-19 on cruise ships; (3) a certification process; and (4) a return to passenger voyages in a manner that mitigates the risk of COVID-19 introduction, transmission, or spread among passengers and crew onboard ships and ashore to communities.
These phases will be further determined based on public health considerations including the trajectory of COVID-19 transmission and the demonstrated ability of cruise ship operators to successfully employ measures that mitigate the risk of COVID-19.
As part of the initial crew testing phases, the additionally contains requirements for (1) shoreside COVID-19 laboratory screening testing of all crew currently onboard; (2) onboard diagnostic testing capabilities for symptomatic travellers (crew and future passengers); (3) shoreside COVID-19 laboratory screening testing of all newly embarking crew; and (4) continued compliance by cruise ship operators with their complete, accurate, and acknowledged No Sail Order Response Plans.
2 Royal Caribbean and 3 Carnival cruise ships can be seen, such a shame.
A drone image shows decommissioned cruise ships being dismantled at Aliaga ship-breaking yard in the Aegean port city of Izmir, western Turkey, October 2, 2020. REUTERS/Umit Bektas
Carnival Fantasy was a ship famous for its outlandish décor, all-night revelry and its size—back when 2,000 was an incredible number of passengers. The “Fun Ship” vibe it introduced in 1990 came with such whimsical spaces as an Egyptian-themed piano bar, decorated with a fake sarcophagus, and a glitzy glass-topped atrium that was the hub of the social scene.
Today the Fantasy is attracting a whole different breed of booty-seeker. In July, the 30-year-old ship sailed to the Aegean Sea, wrapping its final voyage in the shipbreaking capital of Aliaga, Turkey.
Its resting place there is a demolition yard where old cargo ships, tankers, research vessels—and now cruise ships retired during the Covid-19 pandemic—get torn apart and broken into pieces. In this case, they’re not being broken in half to get upgraded and stitched back together. Instead, circling the Fantasy’s partially deconstructed innards are buyers from all sorts of industries, looking for rock bottom deals on everything from artwork and kitchenwares to electrical wires and stainless-steel sinks.
For the cruise company, it’s an opportunity to recoup at least some value from an asset that’s currently acting as dead weight; while ships’ values decline with age, the Fantasy was originally built for about $225 million. And for the recycling companies that buy the vessel for cash and take on the hazardous task of emptying all its valuables, it’s a matter of a months-long salvage resale on steroids.
Cutting the Losses
It’s hard to gauge how exactly much money is made off of cruise ship recycling. Companies don’t immediately disclose the sale prices of the vessels after relinquishing ownership, and the resale value of their most sought-after commodity, scrap steel, fluctuates in each global market on a daily basis.
But the business is booming.
Next to Carnival Fantasy in Aliaga are two other Fantasy-class ships built in the late 1990s. And next to them are two former Royal Caribbean vessels (scrapped by Royal’s Spanish partner line Pullmantur Cruceros). The ships all had big fan bases, even as they aged. Fantasy and its sister ships started 2020 full of passengers bent on fun-in-the-sun activities in the Caribbean, Bahamas, and Mexican Riviera.
A drone image shows decommissioned cruise ships being dismantled at Aliaga ship-breaking yard in the Aegean port city of Izmir, western Turkey, October 2, 2020. REUTERS/Umit Bektas
The ships would have left the fleet in coming years even in a healthy industry; the pandemic sped up the process, with owners of idled vessels haemorrhaging cash and looking to cut their losses.
In its third-quarter filing, Carnival Corporation said it planned to sell 18 “less efficient” ships in 2020, resulting in a 12% reduction of its nine-brand fleet. “Those ships were giving us a bad drain,” Carnival CEO Arnold Donald said during a recent webinar with the Society of American Travel Writers.
Going, Going, Gone
Without much of a market for second-hand tonnage, the main worth of the ships is the steel that makes up the superstructure.
If, for instance, Carnival Fantasy has 15,000 tons of steel in its superstructure, the scrap may sell for upwards of $4.7 million based on current global market prices—though other factors also come into play, such as local prices and demand.
Decommissioned cruise ships are being dismantled at Aliaga ship-breaking yard in the Aegean port city of Izmir, western Turkey, October 2, 2020. REUTERS/Umit Bektas
Along with the risk of these market fluctuations, the buyer also takes on the uncertainty of just how much metal can be salvaged. Pre-1990s ships tend to have more steel in their hulls and underwater plating, but those built in the ’90s and after can bear lighter and stronger alloys.
Either way, steel and metal scraps will travel to a smelter to make rebar for construction projects around the world. Steel from some other dismantled ships can find its way to Turkey’s large car manufacturing industry, where it might become parts for a Toyota or a Ford.
Aluminum, copper, and stainless steel are also salvaged and resold, along with other valuable commodities that mostly remain in Turkey. The ripped out teak decks on Fantasy may end up in local shops, restaurants, and homes. Theatre scenery and lighting may find its way into show productions. Even the tackiest artwork has some value, and can end up in restaurants throughout the country.
Buyers come to the yard for everything down to the bolts and nuts. Even if a used toilet sells for a fraction of the shelf price, multiply that amount by a few thousand—given the number of cabins and public spaces on each ship—and it can add up to a substantial sum.
According to Orbay Simsek, vice president of the Aliaga-based Simsekler Ship Recycling Company, there are even markets for kitchenware, closets, and blankets.
Basically anything and everything that can be sold sells. Everything must go. Even the sarcophagus.
Eco-friendly Shipbreaking
Taking apart ships is a controversial topic, thanks to concerns over both human and environmental risks. It’s one of the most dangerous jobs in the world, according to Wouter Rozenveld, director of Sea2Cradle (SC2), an expert in green ship recycling who was hired by Carnival to oversee the safe dismantling of its ships. Each Carnival vessel may take up to nine months to break down, he says, and the blowtorch-based work comes with constant fire hazards.
Those hazards are amplified when the recyclable component pieces, like furniture, cabling, piping, and machinery inside each deck have to be carefully taken apart and separated says Ehud Bar-Lev, who oversees assessment services at maritime specialist Lloyd’s Register.
The extra steps in disassembly also increase the potential for hazardous waste spills, containing everything from oily residues to sludge, asbestos, and coolants in fridges.
To prevent those incidents, the Turkish shipbreaking yard undertakes its work in a concrete holding area that catches debris; in similar facilities throughout India and Bangladesh, the process may happen on the beach. Rather than letting toxic chemicals spew into the water, the Turkish yard collects the materials, has them catalogued by Sea2Cradle, and then hands them over to the government-run Ship Recycling Association of Turkey for proper disposal.
Carnival Corporation saw these precautions as a marketing opportunity, making a highly unusual move to publicize its efforts as “responsible recycling.” But it was the shipbreaking yard, not Carnival, that saw the biggest windfall as a result: never before has Aliaga seen five mega cruise ships in its harbour.
There may be more coming in the months ahead.
“The longer the pandemic rages on in the world, the more cruise ships will end up in scrapyards, and my guess is at an increasingly younger age,” says Manso Ng, a maritime management professor at Virginia’s Old Dominion University. “Even if a vaccine becomes available, how many of us will be comfortable jumping right back on cruise ships?”
German cruise brand Aida Cruises has cancelled all voyages planned between October 31 and November 30, following news of Germany’s lockdown. The Carnival Corporation brand said in a statement: “As a result of Germany implementing far-reaching measures to contain the coronavirus pandemic, Aida Cruises today (October 29) announced it will temporarily pause its cruises for November, cancelling all voyages planned between October 31 and November 30. “This follows the federal government of Germany’s October 28 decision to impose further restrictions on public life and travel to limit the spread of Covid-19, which Aida Cruises fully supports. “As the leading cruise line in Germany and a part of Carnival Corporation & plc, Aida Cruises’ highest responsibility and top priorities are compliance, environmental protection and the health, safety and well-being of its guests, crew, shoreside employees, and the people and communities its ships visit – and that commitment is reflected in the line’s temporary pause in cruise operations. “Aida Cruises recognises its decision is disappointing to its guests and appreciates guests understanding the importance of making health and safety the most important priority.” The cruise line resumed operations in mid-October and “will closely monitor the further development of the pandemic” before starting cruises again in December onwards. With Covid-19 cases surging across Europe, Germany’s month-long national lockdown starts on Monday (November 2) with the closure of restaurants, bars, gyms and theatres. Meanwhile, France will be going into lockdown from Friday (October 30) with citizens allowed to leave home only for essential work or medical reasons.
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