The keel being laid for one of the SunStone Ships expedition cruise vessel at CMHI in China.

Keel laid for the 'Greg Mortimer' expedition cruise vessel

On 12 June 2018 at 10.18 a.m., the keel laying ceremony of the 'Greg Mortimer' expedition cruise vessel for SunStone Ships was held at CMHI, China.

  • Signing of documents at the 'Greg Mortimer' keel laying ceremony (photo CMHI).
  • Ulstein representatives at the keel laying ceremony.
  • First sections being positioned at the keel laying ceremony.
  • CMHI carried out the keel laying of the first Ulstein designed expedition cruise vessel for SunStone Ships.

The vessel is being constructed at the CMHI (China Merchants Heavy Industry) yard in Haimen.
 

The combination of lucky numbers implies that this vessel will become 'definitely prosperous'.

At the ceremony, Niels-Erik Lund, President & CEO at SunStone, said: "We are proud to cooperate with a dream team who help us pioneer a new age in expedition cruises, including world-class design by Tomas Tillberg, ground-breaking X-BOW technology by Ulstein, interior construction by Mäkinen and more than a century of shipbuilding expertise from CMHI".

ULSTEIN has designed the polar class, X-BOW expedition cruise vessel, and also provides the equipment package for one vessel and options for additionally nine vessels. The equipment package includes the bridge system, ULSTEIN COM and integrated automation system ULSTEIN IAS and ULSTEIN POWER, and site team support to ensure the vessel delivery time.
 

The vessel is based on the CX103 design and sports a Polar Class 6 notation. It measures 104.3 m in length and 18.4 m in the beam.

The vessel will be operating for Aurora Expeditions, and has received the name Greg Mortimer, in honour of the company's adventurous co-founder. 
 

The ship can accommodate totally 255 persons, including crew. For expedition cruises in the polar regions, the vessel will take on just 120 passengers.

X-BOW hull line design
See how Aurora Expeditions describe ULSTEIN's proven X-BOW design, which for the first time has been implemented in a cruise vessel.

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