CANBERRA, Australia (AP) -
An Australian billionaire said Monday he'll
build a high-tech replica of the Titanic at a Chinese shipyard and its
maiden voyage in late 2016 will be from England to New York, just like
its namesake planned.
Weeks after the 100th
anniversary of the sinking of the original Titanic, Clive Palmer
announced Monday he has signed a memorandum of understanding with
state-owned Chinese company CSC Jinling Shipyard to build the Titanic
II.
"It will be every bit as
luxurious as the original Titanic, but ... will have state-of-the-art
21st-century technology and the latest navigation and safety systems,"
Palmer said in a statement. He called the project "a tribute to the
spirit of the men and women who worked on the original Titanic."
More than 1,500 people died
after the Titanic hit an iceberg in the North Atlantic on its first
voyage. It was the world's largest and most luxurious ocean liner at the
time.
Palmer built a fortune on
real estate on Australia's Gold Coast tourist strip before becoming a
coal mining magnate. BRW magazine reported he was Australia's
fifth-richest person last year with more than 5 billion Australian
dollars ($5.2 billion).
Palmer said at a news
conference that previous attempts to build a Titanic replica failed
because proponents failed to raise enough money and commission a
shipyard. The Titanic II is the first of four luxury cruise ships Palmer
has commissioned CSC Jinling Shipyard to build.
Palmer did not provide a
cost estimate. He said he had established a new shipping company, Blue
Star Line Pty. Ltd., and that design work for the Titanic II has begun
with assistance from a historical research team.
The diesel-powered ship will have four smoke stacks like the coal-powered original, but they will be purely decorative.
The most obvious changes
from the original Titanic would be below the water line, including
welding rather than rivets, a bulbous bow for greater fuel efficiency
and enlarged rudder and bow thrusters for increased maneuverability,
Palmer said.
Brett Jardine, general
manager for Australia and New Zealand in the industry group
International Cruise Council, said Titanic II would be small by modern
standards but could prove viable at the top end of the luxury market.
"From a marketing point of view, many will embrace it and perhaps there'll be some that wouldn't," Jardine said.
"If you've got a niche,
it's going to work. Why go out there and try to compete with the mass
market products that are out there now?" he added.
While the Titanic II would
carry around 1,680 passengers, most modern cruise ships create economies
of scale by catering for more than 2,000 passengers, he said.
Among the world's largest
passenger ships, Allure of the Seas is 90 meters (295 feet) longer than
the 270-meter (886-foot) Titanic and has 2,700 cabins.
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