Australian billionaire, Clive Palmer, set to build Titanic II
Friday, May 04, 2012Omoba
Clive
Palmer, one of the richest men in Australia, has unveiled plans to build a
21st-century version of the Titanic, with its first voyage from England to New
York set for 2016. Palmer,
a self-made mining billionaire, said he had commissioned state-owned Chinese
company CSC Jinling Shipyard to construct Titanic II with the same dimensions
and similar layout to its predecessor.
“It
will be every bit as luxurious as the original Titanic but of course it will
have state-of-the-art 21st century technology and the latest navigation and
safety systems,” Palmer said in a statement.
The
announcement comes just weeks after the 100th anniversary of the sinking of
Titanic, which went down on April 15, 1912 after striking an iceberg on its
first voyage, from Southampton to New York. Palmer said the new ship would be a
tribute to the spirit of the men and women who worked on the original, which
sank with the loss of 1,514 passengers and crew.
“These
people produced work that is still marvelled at more than 100 years later and
we want that spirit to go on for another 100 years,” he said.
Titanic was commissioned by White Star Line and was the largest liner in the world in its time. Palmer said he has established his own shipping company, Blue Star Line, with the new vessel having the same specifications as its predecessor – 270 metres long, 53 metres high and weighing some 40,000 tonnes.
Like
the Titanic, Titanic II will have 840 rooms and nine decks. The design work is
being done with the help of a historical research team. No figure was given on
how much it would cost.
0 comments