MEYER WERFT and Silversea celebrate the start of production for Silver Ray
With the symbolic start of burning, MEYER WERFT has started production of the cruise ship Silver Ray for Silversea Cruises. Like the sister ship Silver Nova, which is already under construction, the ship sets new standards for environmental protection and luxury cruising with a multitude of innovations. This will make the ships by far the most sustainable in their class. The Silver Nova will begin service in August 2023, with the Silver Ray following in summer 2024.
"Like the Silver Nova, the Silver Ray represents a milestone on the way to a climate-neutral cruise with its innovative drive concept and other significant technical improvements. I'm sure that both ships will delight their passengers from day one," says Jan Meyer, Managing Director of MEYER WERFT.
"We are very proud to have performed the steel cutting for the Silver Ray at Meyer Werft in Papenburg. This is an important milestone in the construction of one of the most environmentally conscious ships in the industry," said Roberto Martinoli, President and CEO of Silversea Cruises. "As the second ship in our groundbreaking Nova class, the Silver Ray - like her sister ship Silver Nova - will continue to extend our leadership in ultra-luxury cruising by introducing technical innovations that support our mission to bring the world to our guests show, and do it mindfully, respectfully, and with unprecedented comfort."
Thanks to an innovative fuel concept with low-emission LNG, a fuel cell system for all hotel operations and batteries, the new ship has the best possible measures to reduce emissions. The new building already exceeds the highest IMO requirement that will apply in the future by 25 percent in the Energy Efficiency Design Index (EEDI).
The fuel cell system with an output of 4 megawatts will be used in addition to the LNG engines as the first large installation of this type in the cruise industry to supply the ship with electricity and supply all hotel operations. In this way, pollutant emissions are completely avoided during lay times in the port. In addition, a battery system increases the overall efficiency of the ship by absorbing peak loads, thus significantly reducing fuel consumption. A newly developed Micro Auto Gasification System (MAGS) converts waste on board into thermal energy in line with the circular economy, further increasing the efficiency of the ship.
For the first time at Silversea, the Nova class ships will feature a horizontal layout and an innovative asymmetrical design, with public spaces and suites spanning the entire length of the ship. As a result, guests experience an unprecedented open design of the ship towards the water and the destinations.
Innovative ship designs such as the Silver Nova and Silver Ray are the result of years of research and development work by the MEYER Group's more than 1,300 team members in Global Design. Global Design combines all development and design activities of the MEYER Group and is looking for further specialists and junior staff for future technologies. Architects are also being sought for the broad product portfolio of the MEYER Group with cruise and special ships, MEYER YACHTS and MEYER Floating Solutions. In global design, the engineers of the MEYER Group work together at various locations throughout Europe and often digitally.