The first building-block AIDAcosma,  AIDA Cruises’ second LNG-powered cruise ship was put in place at the Meyer's Neptun Werft shipyard in Rostock on 15 October. “The two trainees, Charleen Hoffmann (AIDA Cruises) and Kenny Schaft (Meyer Werft shipyard) placed the traditional lucky coin beneath the first of a total of 90 blocks,” AIDA Cruises said in s statement.

The ship will be cruising from Kiel to the Norwegian fjords and the Baltic Sea from summer 2021, its maiden season.

In 2018 AIDA Cruises alone contributed over €1.6 billion to northern Germany’s economic growth. The company’s economic performance in Rostock alone (exclusive of ship-building) amounted to around €160 million, according to a study carried out by Deloitte & Touche in conjunction with the Universities of Hamburg and Genoa, said AIDA Cruises’ President Felix Eichhorn

With gross tonnage of 183,900 and a length of 337 meters, AIDAcosma will have 20 decks, and space for 2,600 staterooms. AIDA Cruises’ first LNG powered ship, AIDAnova, entered service last year. The same platform is being shared by Costa Crociere, P&O Cruises and Carnival Cruise Line, all of which are parts of Carnival Corporation & plc.