By
Alex Smith |
SunStone Ships’ third and fourth Infinity-class vessels, Ocean Victory and Ocean Explorer, have both completed five days of sea trials in the South China Sea ahead of their scheduled delivery.
Over 150 people were onboard each vessel during the trials, including crews from shipbuilder China Merchants Heavy Industry, Cruise Management International and SunStone Marine Advisors, as well as representatives from classification society Bureau Veritas.
“We are very pleased with the quality and high building standards of China Merchants Heavy Industry, which are fully at the level of European Shipyards,” said Niels-Erik Lund, CEO of SunStone Ships. “We are looking forward to continuing our relationships with all our partners in the Infinity-class project and we, even considering the continued Covid-19 world crisis, are moving fast forward as planned at very satisfactory speed, safety and quality level.”
The Infinity-class vessels are 104 metres long, with capacity for between 130 and 200 passengers. The vessels are ice class 1A, Polar Code 6 and are being built with Safe Return to Port features, dynamic positioning and zero-speed stabilisers, as well as an X-Bow hull from Ulstein Design & Solutions.
Ocean Victory and Ocean Explorer are set for delivery in 2021, along with the fifth Infinity-class ship, Sylvia Earle. They will be followed by Ocean Odyssey and Ocean Albatros in 2022, and by Ocean Discoverer in 2023.