Celebrity Honored for First Gas Turbine Cruise Ship

Celebrity Cruises has been honored by Lloyd's List for building the world's first smokeless gas turbine-powered cruise ship. The recognition came during Lloyd's biennial Shipbuilding, Machinery and Marine Technology (SMM) International Trade Fair in Hamburg, Germany. The event concluded with the presentation of the Lloyd's List-SMM 2002 Awards. Awards were presented for excellence and innovation in merchant shipbuilding, merchant marine technology and machinery, and naval shipbuilding and marine technology. Of the 13 awards presented, Celebrity's Millennium was the winner in the Innovation in Shipbuilding - Passenger Ship category. Millennium was recognized for being the world's first cruise ship to incorporate smokeless gas-turbine engines. The smokeless gas-turbine engines burn a cleaner fuel than traditional diesel, and significantly reduce air emissions by more than 90 percent. "Celebrity has an outstanding history of environmental achievement and we are very proud to be recognized for our use of smokeless gas-turbine technology," said Jack Williams, president and chief operating officer of Celebrity Cruises. "Millennium and her sister ships, Infinity, Summit, and Constellation, have raised the bar for the entire cruise industry in terms of environmental stewardship of our oceans." An assessment committee selected as many as eight finalists in each of the 13 award categories. Final judging was done by an international panel that included William O'Neil, secretary-general, International Marine Organization; Simon Rickaby, president, Institute of Marine Engineering, Science and Technology; Joseph Cuneo, president, Society of Naval Architects and Marine Engineers; John Young, president, European Marine Equipment Council; and Alan Gavin, chairman, International Association of Classification Societies.