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Debut of Oceanwide Expeditions' Janssonius delayed furtherDebut of Oceanwide Expeditions' Janssonius delayed further

Delivery of Oceanwide Expeditions' Polar Class 6 newbuild Janssonius, originally scheduled to be handed over by builder Brodosplit last October, and subsequently delayed into 2022, has slipped again.

Mary Bond, Editor in Chief

July 25, 2022

1 Min Read
CRUISE Janssonius
Oceanwide Expeditions had hoped to operate Janssonius in Antarctica in 2021, and in 2022, but the ship remains unfinished at BrodosplitPHOTO: Oceanwide Expeditions

Launched at the Croatian shipyard in March 2021, the 170-passenger expedition ship was due to begin its first Antarctica season last November.  At that time the impact of the pandemic was cited by Brodosplit as slowing the delivery but the shipyard, a member of the DIV Group, secured access to a €60m loan from VTB Europe, a Russian-owned bank in Frankfurt, to continue the financing of two newbuild projects, including Janssonius.

Sanctions and geopolitical events

However, as a result of sanctions due to the war in Ukraine, the bank was subject to restrictions and earlier this year, the builder was prevented from all further placements on credit lines, said Josip Jurišić, head of PR at the Croatian yard.

Franklin Braeckman, marketing & sales manager Oceanwide Expeditions told Seatrade Cruise, 'A mix of sanctions and geopolitical events have led to supply chain delays and financial constraints at Jassonius' builder in Croatia. 

'Despite our best efforts to navigate these issues with the appropriate political and financial authorities, delays for the delivery date of Janssonius were unavoidable. This will have an impact on the departures for the upcoming Antarctic season,' he remarked.

All affected passengers have been notified and offered various alternatives, ranging from rebooking on similar voyages on board of our other vessels, a later departure date, to a refund of their advance payment, he confirmed.

Business as usual for rest of Oceanwide fleet

None of this impacts Oceanwide's other expedition ships, Plancius, Ortelius and Hondius. All Antarctic departures on those vessels are still secure, he confirmed.

Oceanwide reported it is working hard with the shipyard to find a solution and to be able to offer voyages to the polar regions with Janssonius 'as soon as possible.'

About the Author

Mary Bond

Editor in Chief

Mary Bond is Group Director, Seatrade Cruise a division within Informa Markets and responsible for the Seatrade portfolio of global cruise events, print and online cruise publishing.

Mary is also the publisher and editor-in-chief of Seatrade Cruise News and Seatrade Cruise Review magazine.

Mary has worked in the shipping industry for 39 years, first for Lloyd’s Register of Shipping before joining Seatrade’s editorial team in 1985.

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