By Giulia Segreti
ROME (Reuters) -Norwegian Line Holdings (NCL) and Italian shipbuilder Fincantieri said on Wednesday they had agreed a deal for four new cruise liners, which a source close to the matter said was worth around 9 billion euros ($9.34 billion).
Fincantieri has already built two ships for NCL and a third, called the Norwegian Aqua, will be delivered in the coming months. The four new vessels are the single largest order ever signed by the Italian shipbuilder, the source said.
"The value of this agreement, subject to financing and other typical terms and conditions, is considered very important," Fincantieri said in a statement on the order, adding that an original letter of intent was signed in April 2024.
The ships will be built at Fincantieri's Monfalcone shipyard in north-eastern Italy and the first will be delivered in 2030, it said. The others will be finished in 2032, 2034 and 2036.
Each will be around 226,000 tonnes and will be able to accommodate more than 8,300 people, including crew, said Fincantieri, which in November raised its full-year revenue forecast to above 8 billion euros.
While steadily pursuing its core shipbuilding business, the group is also pushing into the defence and underwater segments.
In May it bought Leonardo's UAS in a deal giving the submarine business an enterprise value of 415 million euros.
CEO Pierroberto Folgiero also said that Fincantieri was open to all types of collaboration with the warship division of conglomerate Thyssenkrupp.
Fincantieri shares have been the fourth-best performer on the Milan bourse over the past 12 months, rising 106%. The stock rose as much as 5.6% on the Milan bourse in early trade, and was up by 2.83% at 0821 GMT.
($1 = 0.9632 euros)
(Additional reporting by Andrea Mandala; Editing by Gianluca Semeraro and Alexander Smith)