A steel cutting ceremony was held for the CX103 expedition cruise design, the ‘Sylvia Earle’, on 16 March 2020 at the CMHI Haimen yard, China. She has been designed by Ulstein Design & Solutions AS for SunStone Ships.
The Sylvia Earle is the sister vessel of the Greg Mortimer, which was delivered in September 2019. Operator for both vessels is the Australian cruise company Aurora Expeditions.
The Sylvia Earle is vessel number 2 in SunStone's INFINITY series, and the fourth of the Ulstein designed exploration cruise vessels under construction at this yard.
Designed with the X-BOW® hull, the vessel will provide the best possible comfort for passengers in rough head seas, as well as being fuel efficient.
Ulstein Power & Control has signed a contract to deliver complete hybrid power and automation systems for two cable-laying vessels to be built for OMS Group at Ulstein Verft. “This is an important contract for us and confirms our position as a leading supplier of systems for complex maritime operations,” says Peter Pilskog, Managing Director of Ulstein Power & Control.
An expedition cruise takes you to the edges of the world, places that remain wild, remote and profoundly beautiful. As exploration gives way to evening, the transition back to the ship feels seamless, from raw landscapes to effortless luxury.
Faster delivery, lower emissions and reduced costs - the subsea sector is now expected to achieve all three simultaneously. At the OSJ Subsea Conference 2026, Ulstein’s Chief Designer, Øyvind Gjerde Kamsvåg, outlined how repurposing can meet these demands and, in many cases, outperform newbuild strategies.