By the Caribbean Journal staff

Princess Cruises is getting greener.

Princess Cruises has signed an agreement to build two new ships, both of which will be powered primarily by liquefied natural gas, the company said this week.

Italian shipbuilder Fincantieri will build the new ships, according to the memorandum of agreement, with delivery slated for late 2023 and spring 2025, respectively.

The new ships will be Princess Cruises’ first dual-powered ships, meaning they will be primarily powered by LNG.

“This revolutionary platform for next-generation, LNG-powered cruise ships will introduce innovative design and leisure experiences driven by the future vacation and lifestyle trends of our guests – further evolving the already best-in-class Princess Cruises experience we deliver today,” said Jan Swartz, president of Princess Cruises. “We look forward to collaborating with Fincantieri to bring our vision for this next- generation premium cruise ship into service,” added Swartz.

The 175,000-gross-ton ships will have capacity for approximately 4,300 guests.

“We are proud to extend our long-established partnership with Princess Cruises, a brand we have been tied to since our return to the cruise ship building industry in 199,” said Giuseppe Bono, CEO of Fincantieri. “After so many years, we are ready to enter, together, a new era of this industry, increasingly aimed at reducing even more of our environmental impact. We proudly do this with an all-time record project, both in terms of size and technology. We believe that there are no more significant milestones than these to reaffirm our market-leading position.”

Princess Cruises already has an order for three new “Royal-class” ships with Fincantieri, including its next new ship, Sky Princess, which is slated for delivery in October 2019.

— CJ