Genting HK sells casino cruise ship for U$900 million

The Company of casino cruises confirmed the operation that will sell the Genting Dream Vessel this month.

Hong Kong.- Casino ships operator and investor Genting Hong Kong Ltd has confirmed the sale of its Genting Dream vessel for a total sum of US$900 million.

The payment will be made once the deal completes “on or around 15 January 2020,” Genting Hong Kong confirmed in a statement. The deal includes a leaseback agreement for a period of 12 years, commencing from the date the ship is delivered to the purchasers.

“As at the date of this announcement, both the first valuation and the second valuation have been obtained. Accordingly, the closing market value shall be the arithmetic average of the first valuation and the second valuation (which is US$1,147.5 million) and the consideration shall be US$900 million”, the company said this week.

Genting Dream, the first ship of the Dream Cruises brand, made its maiden voyage in April 2017. The vessel is one of three existing cruise ships operated under the Dream Cruises business. As of June 30, the unaudited net asset value of the vessel was approximately US$862.5 million, according to a previous filing.

Genting Hong Kong has been seeking funds to finance the expansion of its cruise business. The company has developed a three-brand cruise portfolio with a focus on different market segments: Crystal Cruises for what it terms the ultra-luxury segment; Dream Cruises for what it describes as the premium segment; and Star Cruises for what it defines as the contemporary segment.