On Wednesday, November 12th, MSC Cruises and Chantiers de l’Atlantique/CdA (fka STX France) announced orders for two more units in the World Class series (ships 7 and 8) scheduled for deliveries in 2030 and 2031.
The contract was revealed at a combined milestone event held at the Saint-Nazaire shipyard, marking the float-out of MSC World Asia and the keel-laying ceremony (start of the assembly) of MSC World Atlantic.
The value of the two new ship orders is ~EUR 3.5 billion, bringing MSC’s total investment in CdA in 2025 to ~EUR 7 billion. Together with the existing WORLD ships, the company's total investment in France is ~EUR 10.5 billion.
Pierfrancesco Vago, Executive Chairman of MSC’s Cruise Division, described the World Class platform as embodying the company’s vision to establish new benchmarks for cruising, highlighting that the vessels will rank among the most energy-efficient in operation and that the LNG-ready design ensures future readiness for alternative fuels.
Laurent Castaing, General Manager at CdA, remarked on the exceptional nature of four ship orders in 2025 and expressed gratitude for MSC’s confidence in the shipyard’s capabilities.
Construction of ships 7 and 8 is scheduled to commence in 2029, following the delivery of earlier World Class vessels: MSC World Europa (2022), MSC World America (2025), World Asia (2026) and World Atlantic (2027).