Cruise liner supplier halts sales of deficient fire-resistant panels

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The manufacturer that supplied faulty fire-resistant panels to as many as 45 ships has halted sales of its affected products, as authorities and the cruise industry raced to resolve the problem and reassure travellers.

Finland’s Paroc said it was “working closely with regulatory and government authorities” as it sought to address issues that scuppered the launch of Explora I, MSC’s brand new €500mn cruise ship, earlier this month. The company “identified a certification issue” with some of its insulation material designed to contain a fire breakout, it said, without elaborating further.

“We have suspended the distribution and sales of these products and have alerted the relevant regulatory authorities,” Jari Airola, managing director of Paroc’s European insulation business, told the Financial Times.

In early July, MSC, the Swiss-based shipping empire founded by Italian billionaire Gianluigi Aponte, did not take delivery of the liner from shipbuilder Fincantieri at a day’s notice after Paroc lost the safety certification for some of its panels, the FT reported. Dozens of other ships are affected, Paroc told customers then.

The problem has arisen as the cruise operators emerge from the Covid-19 pandemic and pin their hopes on a resurgence in passenger volumes. Explora I is a 248-metre-long vessel boasting 14 decks, swimming pools, spas, nine restaurants and hundreds of luxury suites.

On Thursday Fincantieri delivered the liner to MSC with a two-week delay. The shipbuilder replaced Paroc’s products with other insulation material “where possible and “doubled the insulation where necessary,” it said.

The remedies have been approved by regulatory bodies and no Paroc products will be used on other ships under construction, it added.

The problem of how shipowners will deal with Paroc panels that are currently installed on dozens of other vessels in operations remains. In recent days, flag states, shipbuilders and cruise operators have held conversations about how to handle the uncertified products. Ships affected include cruise liners and other types of vessels, according to people familiar with the matter.

People familiar with the matter said the insulation products had been installed on at least two other ships owned by MSC, including the MSC Euribia. 

Paroc, which was acquired by New York-listed Owens Corning in 2018, first informed Fincantieri in May that it had lost its certification for these products, people with knowledge of the matter previously said.

Separately, cruise operators Carnival and Royal Caribbean told the FT that a single boat in each of their fleets had been affected. Royal Caribbean said it was working with the flag state where its vessel was registered to find a “permanent solution”. 

The Cruise Lines International Association, whose members are responsible for 95 per cent of the world’s ocean-going cruise capacity, said that operators “remain vigilant in monitoring of safety systems to degrees that often exceed that of other industries and maritime requirements”.