MIAMI, May 14, 2020 /PRNewswire/ -- Carnival
Corporation & plc (NYSE/LSE: CCL; NYSE: CUK), the world's
largest leisure travel company and cruise operator, announced today
a number of additional actions it is taking to further strengthen
its liquidity position in the event of an extended pause in guest
operations due to COVID-19.
Carnival Corporation was the first to pause the guest cruise
operations of some of its brands in the face of the impact of the
COVID-19 global pandemic, followed on March
13th by the rest of its brands and the other cruise
companies. That action was taken before stay-at-home or
shelter-in-place was implemented in the U.S. and before U.S.
hotels, airlines, restaurants and other forms of public gathering
or transportation began shutting down or limiting service.
Last month the company completed a successful financing effort
with a heavily oversubscribed offering of senior secured notes,
senior convertible notes and common stock, netting $6.4 billion of additional liquidity. To further
strengthen liquidity, Carnival Corporation and its brands are
announcing a combination of layoffs, furloughs, reduced work weeks
and salary reductions across the company, including senior
management. These moves will contribute hundreds of millions of
dollars in cash conservation on an annualized basis.
Since the company paused its guest cruise operations in early
March, workforce changes were largely placed on hold, even in the
face of no meaningful revenue, to forestall the financial impact on
its employees while still meeting its fiscal responsibilities –
deferring employee actions beyond that of many others in similar
situations during this pandemic. The company continues to support
its travel agent partners by paying commissions on canceled cruises
and on future cruise credits when guests rebook.
In addition to its continuing efforts to repatriate the many
thousands of crew members still on its ships to their home
countries, the company is also working closely with governments,
regulatory agencies, health and infectious disease care
experts around the globe to develop the best practice public
health protocols to address the threat of COVID-19 for when guest
operations resume. Repatriation efforts include chartered flights
as well as rerouting its ships to crew home ports where those ships
would not have otherwise sailed. The company is also working
closely with its many destination partners as it continues to
evaluate the best options and safety protocols for return to
service.
"Taking these extremely difficult employee
actions involving our highly dedicated workforce is a very
tough thing to do. Unfortunately, it's necessary, given the current
low level of guest operations and to further endure this pause,"
said Carnival Corporation & plc President & CEO
Arnold Donald. "We care deeply about
all our employees and understanding the impact this is having on so
many strengthens our resolve to do everything we can to return
to operations when the time is right. We look forward to the day
when many of those impacted are returning to work with us and we
look forward to the day, when appropriate, that once again our
ships and crew are delighting millions of people at sea and we can
be there for the many nations and millions of people who depend on
the cruise industry for their livelihood.
Added Donald, "We also want to thank our guests for their many
thoughtful notes and overall outpouring of support. It is clear
there is tremendous anticipation for a return to cruising. It's
also encouraging to note that the majority of guests affected by
our schedule changes want to sail with us at a later date, with
fewer than 38 percent requesting refunds to date. Our booking
trends for the first half of 2021, which remain within historical
ranges, demonstrate the resilience of our brands and the strength
of our loyal recurring customer base, of which 66% are repeat
cruisers. In addition, we plan to stagger fleet reentry to
optimize demand and operating performance over time."
The cruise industry is a significant contributor to the U.S. and
global tourism sectors, according to the Cruise Lines International
Association (CLIA), with economic impact in the U.S. exceeding well
over $50 billion in total
contributions. On a global scale, the economic output due to the
cruise industry continues to produce new jobs and
income, generating a total global output of over $150 billion and supporting over 1.2 million
total jobs.
About Carnival Corporation & plc
Carnival
Corporation & plc is the world's largest leisure travel company
with a portfolio of nine of the world's leading cruise lines. With
operations in North America,
Australia, Europe and Asia, its portfolio features Carnival Cruise
Line, Princess Cruises, Holland America Line, Seabourn, P&O
Cruises (Australia), Costa
Cruises, AIDA Cruises, P&O Cruises (UK) and Cunard.
Additional information can be found on www.carnival.com,
www.princess.com, www.hollandamerica.com, www.seabourn.com,
www.pocruises.com.au, www.costacruise.com, www.aida.de,
www.pocruises.com and www.cunard.com.
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SOURCE Carnival Corporation & plc