RCCL “Confident” It Will Secure Oasis Financing

Royal Caribbean Cruises Ltd. is confident it will secure the necessary 20 percent financing to complete the two 220,000-ton Oasis-class vessels now under construction in Finland. In a 10-K filing to the SEC this week, RCCL said it has commitments for financing guarantees from Finnvera, the export credit agency of Finland, for 80 percent of the financed amount.

Some industry observers and media took that last sentence to mean that the Oasis project could be in jeopardy. However, Ian Bailey, RCCL’s vice president-investor relations, told Travel Pulse that the annual 10-K filing is obligated to identify any possible risk that could affect investors, however remote.

The 10-K also noted the difficulty in getting credit in the current economy. While company execs concurred that the market is difficult, they say they remain confident that financing will be arranged. The 5,400-passenger Oasis of the Seas is due out in December, while sister ship Allure of the Seas is scheduled for delivery in 2010.