The NEcOLEAP project, led by Meyer Turku, is determined to design and build a climate-neutral cruise ship.
Meyer Turku was selected to take part in Business Finland’s financing project for leading companies and their partner ecosystems, which aims to help companies to increase their RDI investments in Finland. Meyer’s NEcOLEAP project develops carbon-neutral and sustainable technological solutions for cruise ships through an extensive partnership network. The goal is to secure a billion-order cruise ship order for Turku Shipyard.
According to the shipyard, the direct employment impact of securing a single climate-neutral ship order will be approximately 12,000 person-years, which is equivalent to approximately 9,500 jobs for the shipyard and its ecosystem of partners.
Work surrounding the ship design will be comprehensive, and the R&D topics will focus on: the cruise ship itself; the shipyard’s operations' shipbuilding; and the introduction of smart technologies and the open-minded professionals of the future.
According to Tapani Pulli, EVP at Meyer Turku, the main goal of the NEcOLEAP project will be to adapt the business towards the green transition and meet the demands of climate action together with Meyer’s partner ecosystem.
Meyer Turku’s goal is to develop a climate-neutral cruise ship concept by 2025, and to achieve carbon neutral shipbuilding by 2030. The cost estimate of the NEcOLEAP project is approximately EUR 100 million, of which Business Finland’s financial contribution to Meyer is EUR 20 million and Meyer Turku’s own contribution is EUR 30 million. Business Finland has also set aside EUR 50 million for companies, research institutes and universities involved in the ecosystem.
Partnerships -- both inside and outside of traditional maritime technology circles -- across private companies, research entities and government will be pivotal to NEcOLEAP's success.
"In the NEcOLEAP project, we will explore new sustainable technologies that can be leveraged to develop energy and resource efficiency, automation, robotics and cybersecurity for ships and shipbuilding," said Pulli.