Products & services

Marella Cruises contracts V.Ships Leisure for ship management services

Details: Written by Teijo Niemelä Teijo Niemelä; Category: Products & services Products & services; Published: 30 July 2025 30 July 2025

V.Ships Leisure, part of V.Group, has been awarded a ship management contract by Marella Cruises, TUI UK&I’s ocean cruise line.

The five-year agreement will cover the full technical, crewing, digital and ESG management of all of Marella’s five cruise ships, with operations commencing towards the end of 2025. The first two vessels will come into management by the end of the year, with the other three joining in the first half of 2026.

As part of the new partnership, V.Ships Leisure will build upon its already strong UK presence by establishing a dedicated Marella Cruises fleet cell in the UK, operating from its Southampton office and supported by the wider V. network. The decision reflects V.’s commitment to providing Marella Cruises with local expertise backed by global scale, reach and experience.

V. will leverage its ShipSure platform to enable data-driven decision-making across fleet maintenance and operations, supporting more efficient and proactive management and giving Marella Cruises enhanced transparency to the operations.

Marella Cruises will benefit both from V.’s end-to-end management services and from V.ERDE, its dedicated decarbonisation and environmental compliance programme.

Adrian Hibbert, Cruise Operations Director at Marella Cruises, commented: “Throughout the tender process, we were hugely impressed by the calibre of the team at V.Ships Leisure and the depth of their industry expertise. We look forward to working together to deliver safe, reliable and sustainable operations across our fleet.”

Per Bjørnsen, CEO of V.Ships Leisure, said: “This contract is a clear endorsement of our talented team, commitment to ESG and our digital first approach. Above all, it’s testament to our track record and further reinforces our leadership in the cruise sector. We are extremely proud to be working with Marella Cruises and are looking forward to collaborating to achieve operational excellence.”

MXP introduces sophisticated Port Cost Management software

Details: Written by Teijo Niemelä Teijo Niemelä; Category: Products & services Products & services; Published: 15 July 2025 15 July 2025

MXP introduces new powerful functionality with its Port Cost Management software. Using actual itinerary data, sophisticated calculations can compute accurate costs even for complex scenarios. This takes maritime financial operations to the next level. The fully integrated MXP Enterprise Platform equips cruise lines with significant improvements in financial accuracy, enabling smarter budgeting, precise forecasting, and enhanced transparency in port-related financial planning.

Key highlights

Formula-based costing
Users can now define dynamic cost formulas using combinations of predefined variables such as vessel characteristics, passenger and crew counts, as well as itinerary details.

Advanced tiering logic
Apply conditional pricing based on thresholds like ship size, seasonality, call frequency, or passenger tiers – ideal for modeling port tariffs with precision.

Access control & full audit trails
Enhance governance with user-specific access rights and comprehensive audit logging for all formula and tier updates – ensuring transparency and compliance.

Simulation & testing tools
Run simulations with actual itinerary data to verify outcomes before applying formulas, giving users confidence and clarity on calculated values.

Automated & on-demand recalculation
Refresh invoice calculations with the latest operational data – either manually or through scheduled jobs – keeping everything up-to-date and aligned with current figures.

Smarter port costing with MXP
MXP empowers cruise operators with precision, agility, and data-driven decision-making.

By automating calculations tied to real operational variables, it delivers:
– Better visibility into port spend
– Faster, more reliable cost processing
– Alignment with contractual and operational realities

MXP is the award-winning and innovative software partner for the global cruise industry, delivering the leading MXP Enterprise Platform designed specifically for cruise operations. With over 400 installations across more than 60 cruise brands, MXP has become the go-to solution for increasing revenue, enhancing the guest experience, and supporting end-to-end operations onboard and ashore.

Finnish energy solutions provider WE Tech Solutions opens new office in China

Details: Written by Teijo Niemelä Teijo Niemelä; Category: Products & services Products & services; Published: 02 July 2025 02 July 2025

WE Tech Solutions, a leading provider of energy solutions for the shipping industry, has announced the opening of a new office in China. This strategic expansion highlights the company's commitment to strengthening its global presence and enhancing its ability to serve customers in the rapidly growing Chinese market.

The new office, located at Kingboard Plaza, 269 Tongxie Road, Changning, Shanghai, China, will serve as a hub for sales and customer support while fostering closer collaboration with local partners, suppliers, and customers.

“We are thrilled to announce the establishment of our new office in China. This milestone reflects our dedication to strengthen our presence and deepening our engagement with the Chinese market,” says Mårten Storbacka, CEO of WE Tech Solutions.

With a strong focus on zero-emission shipping and sustainability, the company is assured to make a positive impact in China. By strengthening the local presence, WE Tech Solutions will be better positioned to address the unique needs of the customers, partners, and the shipping industry market in China.

“We look forward to strengthening our relationships and continuing to deliver market-leading energy solutions to our customers,” Storbacka adds.

Heineken invests in cruise business with bar crew training program

Details: Written by Teijo Niemelä Teijo Niemelä; Category: Products & services Products & services; Published: 03 July 2025 03 July 2025

With consumer-focused quality a key component in its growth strategy, Heineken Global Duty Free is accelerating its draught beer training programme for cruise partners.

The Heineken Passion & Quality Training programme has been developed to address the dynamics of the on-board draught experience, where speed of service is a priority. Launched in the EU in 2023, the training programme has doubled year on year, with over 1000 crew members trained to date.

The expanded 2025 programme welcomes another 1500 bar personnel across training programmes in Europe and Mexico to complete the Heineken draught pouring quality ritual that epitomises the principles of former Heineken president, Freddy Heineken and his enduring legacy, “The only reason to order a second beer is the quality of the first.”

Led by the best draught masters from the Heineken Experience in Amsterdam, the training takes place in the onboard bars so that crew are in their natural working environment with familiar set-up and equipment. The on-shore programme includes Athens, Barcelona, Civitavecchia, Cozumel and Southampton and is part of the Heineken global quality commitment to ensure Heineken consumers enjoy the best possible experience in bars on land and at sea.

Christian Klimpke, Global Account Manager Cruises, Heineken Global Duty Free, commented: “Quality is at the heart of Heineken® wherever we operate, and crew engagement is fundamental to the success of our Cruise business. Our focus on quality extends beyond the beer to the people entrusted to fill the glass. The Cruise training programme has been highly successful, and is very popular with bar teams who become valued Heineken ambassadors. The training helps busy on-board bars to better meet the expectations of guests, driving results for our Cruise partners and Heineken, but also increasing guest satisfaction too.”

Participating cruise lines include Carnival, Celebrity, Costa, Holland America, MSC, Princess, P&O, and Royal Caribbean.

Already the second-biggest brewer globally and the market leader in Europe, the Heineken company has a presence in 190 markets worldwide with annual revenue in 2024 of €35.995 billion. It is now on a mission to become the top seller in the 2.2 million-hectolitre beer and cider category in GTR, drawing on its broad brand portfolio of beers, ciders and seltzers, including Heineken, Dos Equis, Amstel, Lagunitas and Birra Moretti, as well as consumer-focused data insights and inclusive Next Generation marketing campaigns.

Elomatic secures a major delivery contract with Carnival Corporation for Elogrid installation on its XL-Class vessels

Details: Written by Teijo Niemelä Teijo Niemelä; Category: Products & services Products & services; Published: 26 June 2025 26 June 2025

Elomatic, an international consulting and engineering company, has today announced the signing of a major delivery contract with Carnival Corporation & plc, the world’s largest cruise company, for the installation of its innovative Elogrid tunnel thruster technology on Carnival Corporation’s entire XL-Class fleet, including nine retrofit vessels and two newbuilds. The installation program will begin in Autumn 2025 and continue through to 2028, aligned with scheduled dry dockings.

This contract represents a major milestone in the deployment of Elomatic’s Elogrid technology. For the XL-class cruise vessels, whether installed on newbuilds or retrofits, Elogrid delivers measurable benefits across key performance areas, including reduced fuel consumption and greenhouse gas emissions. It also reduces the impact on vessel maneuverability compared to traditional grids, supporting safe and efficient operations.

Jukka Suvanto, Senior Sales Manager at Elomatic, said: “The deployment of Elogrid technology on these high-capacity cruise vessels represents a significant milestone, not only for Elomatic, but also for the maritime industry's transition to more sustainable operations. We’re proud to support Carnival Corporation’s environmental objectives with a solution that brings measurable energy savings. This achievement reflects Elomatic’s extensive expertise in the marine industry and our ability to combine flow and structural analysis with advanced product modelling to create solutions that improve efficiency.”

Bo-Erik Blomqvist, SVP, Corporate Shipbuilding with Carnival Corporation, commented: “Elomatic and Carnival Corporation share a strong commitment to reducing our environmental footprint, making this collaboration a natural alignment of values. As we continue on our sustainability journey, partnering with companies such as Elomatic further enables us to leverage engineering innovations in our fleet and operations to deliver on our sustainability roadmap.”

This agreement further highlights the importance of forward-thinking partnerships in driving the cruise industry’s transition towards lower emissions, quieter, and more efficient maritime transport.

Photo: Carnival's Mardi Gras in Roatan, Honduras. Credit: Teijo Niemela