|
 Royal
Asian Cruises has signed an agreement with the Board of Investment in Sri Lanka
to launch a luxury cruise line in Sri Lanka.
Royal Asian Cruises [RAC], which currently has offices in the US and in India,
will invest US$200 million over the years in the Sri Lankan venture. It will
also acquire and operate two vessels over the course of 2016.
The cruise line will cater to the global leisure travel markets with special
emphasis on the Indian and Sri Lankan diaspora and the European and Southeast
Asian markets.
Dr. Lakshman Jayaweera, Chairman of the BOI signed the agreement on behalf of
the BOI and Mano Sinnarajah, Chairman/Managing Director signed the agreement on
behalf of Royal Asian Cruises.
The first, state-of-the-art, modern cruise ships to be Home Ported in Sri Lanka
will be an 800-passenger vessel and is scheduled to set sail in late 2015 from
the Port of Colombo.
Royal Asian Cruises also plans to invest in a larger second vessel which will be
able to comfortably accommodate 1,500 – 2,000 passengers, which should enter
service in early 2016.
“As a Sri Lankan, I am really proud to be back in my homeland, and investing in
a large-scale project of this nature. It gives me pleasure in knowing that Sri
Lanka is now a safe country, conducive for investment and business
opportunities” stated Mano Sinnarajah, Chairman / Managing Director, Royal Asian
Cruises.
Speaking further, Sinnarajah stated: “This venture will have many direct and
indirect benefits on the Sri Lankan economy, starting from the provisioning
services from local businesses the cruise vessel will require in operating from
Sri Lanka to the natural shopping and spending capability of the passengers and
crew that will arrive on a weekly basis.”
In order to provide guests a memorable luxury cruise experience, RAC has
assembled a team of the most experienced cruise executives in the business and
has partnered with internationally renowned marine architecture and interior
design company, Tillberg Design, to craft the interiors of its cruise ships.
Expressing himself on the signing of this project, Dr. Lakshman Jayaweera,
Chairman, Board of Investment of Sri Lanka stated: “It is truly gratifying to
see that a Sri Lankan has returned to his mother country to invest in a project
of this nature. Catering to a sector in the leisure travel industry that has not
been previously addressed, Royal Asian Cruises will help Sri Lanka meet the
targets in tourism set up by the Government of Sri Lanka. Furthermore, this
project will contribute towards making Sri Lanka a major maritime hub, which is
a strategic objective of the Government.”
Using Sri Lanka as its home port, the cruise line will have year – round cruises
and will call on ports such as Maldives and Cochin on seven-night cruises. They
also plan to offer shorter (3- & 4-night) cruises around Sri Lanka and longer
cruises (10 and 11-nights) all the way to Singapore and back.
“With this venture, we plan on delivering an outstanding guest experience in Sri
Lanka” stated Andrew Landsberger, Director of Shore Excursions. “We will project
Sri Lanka as a one-stop destination because of the unique geography and nature
it has, in comparison to other countries with similar capabilities.”
Other members of the Royal Asian Cruises executive team include Bill Chambers,
who will head up international marketing. Chambers has over 35 years managing
the marketing of luxury cruise products and this is the third cruise line
start-up he has initiated. Other members of the Executive Team include Paul
Hardy as VP of Entertainment and Siegfried Schober as VP of Hotel Operation.
Royal Asian Cruises is also expected to create a significant number of
employment opportunities for Sri Lankans and their five-year plan is to expand
to a fleet of five ships representing a total investment of 720 million US
Dollars. |
