V.Ships has been brought in to manage five arrested cruiseships put up for auction in the UK.

The shipmanager told TradeWinds it has been busy with crew change and maintenance issues after the collapse of UK operator Cruise & Maritime Voyages (CMV) last month.

"We are managing the ships pending the auction and preparing them for after the sales," Per Bjornsen, director of marine operation at V. Ships' leisure sector in Monaco, said.

V.Ships was awarded the contract for the fleet in August, but Bjornsen could not disclose the party or parties behind the deal.

Creditors including Monjasa, P&O Princess Cruises and Macquarie Bank are seeking to recoup money owed by CMV.

Sales of the vessels, moored in Tilbury and Avonmouth, have been set for October after London High Court orders earlier this month.

The ships are the 20,700-gt Astor (built 1987), 46,100-gt Magellan (built 1985), 22,100-gt Marco Polo (built 1965), 55,900-gt Vasco da Gama (built 1993) and 63,800-gt Columbus (built 1989).

Vessels 'abandoned'

However, V.Ships will not manage the former CMV vessel Astoria as the 16,100-dwt vessel (built 1948) was chartered from administrators of Lisbon-headquartered Portuscale Cruises and no sales order has yet been made.

The other five were operated by Global Cruise Lines, part of Greek owner Global Maritime Group.

"They were abandoned by the charterers," Bjornsen told TradeWinds.

In terms of maintenance, he said: "There was a bit of catching up to do."

The vessels hit the headlines over the summer after complaints by crew over overdue wages and expired contracts during Covid-9 lockdowns.

The UK's Maritime and Coastguard Agency stepped into the fray and detained the quintet.

V.Ships has been repatriating some seafarers, Bjornsen said.

Mix of new and old crews

"Not all the crew have been replaced. It is a mix of old and new — we have brought some replacements in," the V.Ships director added.

"We have given them the choice of whether to renew contracts. It is up to them."

Bjornsen added that his company is making sure the crew has everything it needs, including food

"Someone has to do it. That's our job as shipmanagers. We are happy to help," he said.

Asked if V.Ships was hopeful of retaining management contracts under new owners, Bjornsen said: "We will consider that on a case-by-case basis, based on our usual risk-management assessment for new contacts."