Karl WP Beyer June 23, 2020- The Spanish cruise line Pullmantur Cruceros is in insolvency proceedings under Spanish law. The “restructuring” insolvency proceedings could be the beginning of the end of the three-ship cruise company.
The Madrid-based Pullmantur Cruceros are part of a joint venture. The shareholders of the investment company are Cruises Investment Holding (a company of the Springwater Capital Group) with 51 percent and Royal Caribbean Cruises Ltd. with 49 percent. Pullmantur is Spain's largest cruise company. The company operates three older ships acquired from Royal Caribbean. The sales concept is aimed primarily at the Spanish-speaking market. The originally loss-making company did not manage to turn around until 2019. The corona pandemic hit Pullmantur Cruises hard. The Royal Caribbean Group was forced to make a write-down on the Pullmantur stake in the balance sheet for the first quarter of 1.
Pullmantur cruise ship Zenith in St. Petersburg
All Pullmantur cruises have been canceled until November 15, 2020. The ships are in a "cold lay-up" with only a few crew members on board. Dangerous things can be heard from on board the ships: equipment and accessories are being removed and unloaded. - Royal Caribbean meanwhile offers the booked Pullmantur passengers to travel on other ships of the Royal Caribbean group as an alternative. As alternative options, Royal Caribbean International and Celebrity Cruises-Cruise ships called.
The cruise industry has been hit hard by COVID-19 in unforeseen ways. Even the industry giants Carnival and Royal Caribbean have been hit hard by the pandemic. It is to be feared that Pullmantur will not remain the only damage in the industry.
