An expanding Portuguese cruise company has picked up the first of Cruise & Maritime Voyages' (CMV) ships to be sold at auction.
Porto-based Mystic Invest confirmed to TradeWinds that it has purchased the 55,900-gt Vasco da Gama (built 1993), which was auctioned in the UK on Friday.
The price for the unit has not been revealed, but VesselsValue estimates the ship's current market value at $9.78m.
Mystic Invest specialises in river and expedition cruises and owns brands including DouroAzul, Nicko Cruises, Mystic Cruises and Atlas Ocean Voyages.
Mario Ferreira, Mystic's chairman, told TradeWinds that his company will target English and German passengers with the new acquisition.
"It is our intention to bet in the under 1,000-passenger cruise ship experience," he explained.
"We believe that once the Covid-19 emergency passes, the initial search for small cruise ships cruising is going to be much more accelerated than the larger 4,000- to 6,000-passenger vessels.
"We will position Vasco da Gama on the German and English market with a great value for money," he said.
In January, Mystic Cruises ordered four more polar expedition cruiseship newbuildings, bringing its orderbook to six in total.
The ice-class Explorer vessels are being built by West Sea Estaleiros Navais in Portugal, which is part of industrial group Martifer SGPS.
The 9,300-gt, 200-berth units will have a hybrid propulsion system and will carry 112 crew.
One of the expedition vessels — the 9,923-gt World Explorer — has already entered into service.
Another newbuilding is scheduled for delivery by the end of this year, plus one vessel in 2021, two in 2022 and two in 2023.
End of the road for CMV
Following the sale of the Vasco da Gama, four other ex-CMV cruiseships are being sold at auction in the UK this month, following an order by the London High Court in September.
The effects of the Covid-19 pandemic on the cruise market caused UK operator CMV, which is part of Greece's Global Maritime Group, to collapse earlier this year. The firm went into administration in July.
The remaining vessels being auctioned are the 20,700-gt Astor (built 1987); the 46,100-gt Magellan (built 1985), the 22,100-gt Marco Polo (built 1965) and the 63,800-gt Columbus (built 1989).
Bidding for the Columbus closed at noon in London on Monday with an outcome expected soon.
Bids for the Astor must be submitted by Thursday this week, with deadlines for bidding on the Magellan on 19 October and Marco Polo on 22 October.
Two other ships from Carnival Corp subsidiary P&O Australia that CMV, via Global Maritime Group, had lined up purchase deals on with were called off and new buyers have been sought.
At the end of September P&O Australia said that one of the pair, the 70,300-gt Pacific Dawn (built 1991), had instead been sold to undisclosed interests and would be immediately handed over.
It has now emerged that the ship has been sold to an entity called Ocean Builders who plan to turn the ship into an offshore working community for crypto-currency entrepreneurs, blockchain enthusiasts and other types of digital nomads.
The other ship that CMV was to acquire, the 55,900-gt Pacific Aria (built 1994), is still being marketed for sale.
