Port of Seattle signs historic lease with Norwegian Cruise Line Holdings
The Port of Seattle signed a historic 15-year lease with Norwegian Cruise Line Holdings parent company of Norwegian Cruise Line, Oceania Cruises and Regent Seven Seas Cruises. The deal secures NCLH ships in Seattle for the full term of the lease and provides passenger volume guarantees estimated to bring $73 million dollars of revenue to the port.
In addition NCLH will make tenant improvements to the Bell Street Cruise Terminal estimated at $30 million which will significantly expand the portion of the P66 facilities used for processing cruise passengers. Under the new lease NCLH will manage the cruise operations at P66 and will have priority rights to the cruise vessel berth during the cruise season. The port will operate the facilities outside the cruise season. The capital investment to complete the terminal improvements will be shared between the Port and NCLH. The 15-year business commitment is estimated to generate over $2 billion in total business revenue for the region, nearly 900 jobs, and over $65 million in state and local taxes.
The agreement also includes language that will establish a Project Labor Agreement (PLA) between the tenant’s general contractor and the building trades.
Seattle’s cruise business—currently leading all cruise homeports on the U.S. west coast in passenger volume—is responsible for over 3,600 jobs, $441 million in annual business revenue, and $17.2 million annually in state and local tax revenues. Each homeport vessel call generates $2.5 million for the local economy.
About the Port of Seattle
Founded in 1911, The Port owns and operates Seattle-Tacoma International Airport, four container cargo terminals, two cruise ship terminals, one grain terminal, a public cargo terminal, four public marinas, and manages a number of real estate assets for financial return and economic advantage. The port’s operations currently help create nearly 200,000 jobs and $7 billion in wages throughout the region. Over the next 23 years, the port’s “Century Agenda” seeks to create an additional 100,000 jobs through economic growth while becoming the nation’s leading green and energy-efficient port.
