MSC Cruises has cut the first steel for its new Seaside Evolution-class cruise ship and revealed that it will be called MSC Seashore, at a ceremony at the Italian shipyard Fincantieri in Monfalcone.

The 169,400-gross ton cruise ship is an evolution of MSC Cruises’ innovative Seaside-class, and will feature many of the same features as and MSC Seaview, but with an even more advanced environmental footprint.

RELATED: How MSC Cruises Americanised MSC Seaside for US cruise market in Caribbean

RELATED: MSC drops prices for Middle East guests on MSC Seaside Caribbean itineraries

At a ceremony held at Fincantieri’s shipyard in Monfalcone, Italy, MSC Cruises’ Executive Chairman Pierfrancesco Vago and Fincantieri’s Chief Executive Officer Giuseppe Bono launched the cutting of the first steel of this new ship.

“Today, only one year after MSC Seaside entered into service, we are taking this award-winning concept to the next level by starting the construction of a further evolved and even richer ship,” said MSC Cruises’ Executive Chairman Pierfrancesco Vago.

MSC and Fincantieri executives start the steel cutting for MSC Seashore.

MSC Seashore is the first of two Seaside EVO ships being built by Fincantieri. She will be delivered in the spring of 2021, while her sister ship is due for delivery in 2022.

MSC Seashore will differ from the Seaside-class in a number of key ways. She will feature an additional lounge aft, a larger MSC Yacht Club across three decks in the bow, specialty restaurants for al fresco dining on the promenade and a larger number of whirlpools.

There will also be 200 additional cabins as well as even more generous public spaces, bringing her passenger capacity to 5,632, thanks to her 16,000-gross ton larger size compared to MSC Seaside and MSC Seaview.

MSC Seashore will be a larger iteration of MSC Cruises’ Seaside-class ships.

RELATED: MSC deploying newer MSC Splendida in Dubai until 2019

RELATED: MSC 2nd major cruise line to ban single-use plastics fleet wide

These new ships will also feature even more advanced environmental technology, including a selective catalytic reduction system; exhaust gas cleaning technology; state-of-the-art waste management and recycling systems; advanced water treatment systems; and an advanced energy and heat recovery system, as well as other technology and measures to further increase energy efficiency.

“MSC Seashore is an example of our commitment to bringing the most innovative and technologically-advanced tonnage to the sea, and will be bestowed with the latest and best maritime and environmental technology available,” said Vago.

MSC Cruises’ Executive Chairman Pierfrancesco Vago.

The steel cutting for MSC Seashore brings the total number of ships under construction for MSC Cruises to four as the cruise line aggressively expands, one of these ships is the Dubai-bound MSC Bellissima.

MSC has an industry-unprecedented 10-year development plan for 17 additional new mega ships. MSC Seashore is the seventh ship to be built under this plan and will become the 19th ship MSC Cruises has built since its inception in 2003.

MSC Cruises is the world’s largest privately-owned cruise company and leading cruise brand in Europe, South America, South Africa and the Arabian Gulf. MSC Seashore will be joined by a second as-yet unnamed Seaside EVO ship in autumn 2022.