Financial & Management Consulting.

 

Bermello, Ajamil & Partners has been assisting Port Authorities, Private Companies and Governments in evaluating financial and management aspects of their port operations for over 20 years throughout the world. BA has the most experience in assisting the development and finance of ports and in particularly cruise ports. Our work includes not only the development of the financial and business plan from which negotiations can take place but to the actual negotiation and drafting of user agreements between the parties.

Among Our Services:

Negotiations

The negotiations between cruise lines and ports or governments can take a variety of directions or strategies

  • Memorandum of Understandings: Where parties agree to cooperate, but not necessarily guarantee traffic or funds.
  • Usage Agreements: Win which cruise lines agree to guarantee a minimum annual number of passengers usually linked to specific tariffs or rates. These types of agreements usually impose limitations in terms of future rate increases as well as requirements for preferential berth guarantees.

  • Financial Guarantees: Linked to annual payments. Like usage agreements, these usually also have some form of linkage to tariff and preferential benefits.

  • Direct Investment: these are agreements where cruise lines have provided funding as a loan to a government in return for certain benefits like preferential berthing. These types of loans usually carry payment provisions with interest.

In some cases, BA has taken the lead position of negotiating agreements and in others BA has been providing the consultation to the Government or Owner behind the scenes. Since BA has been involved in so many of these deals, BA maintains a library of typical agreements. 

 

Our Negotiation Experience includes:

Financial Modeling
Bermello, Ajamil & Partners has one of the most robust financial modeling practices for cruise ports in the world and can custom tailor the financial model to replicate the condition being studied based on the business model and concession agreement that is planned.

Typically, BA builds an interactive model that would allow the Owner, banks or other parties the ability
to test and understand different variables, and easily create sensitivity analysis that can be used for negotiations by allowing studies of different tariffs or rate structures. The models are sensitive to the operating conditions of the area and will also be sensitive to utilization.

Below is some of the most recent work that BA has also completed modeling for the following cruise
operations:

Supporting project financing:

BA has developed financial models and has participated with underwriters, banks, rating agencies in the raising of capital for Port projects including:

Comparative tariff studies:

BA has performed a significant number of comparative tariff studies for ports throughout the Caribbean and the world including:

Leadership
Maritime

Luis Ajamil, PE

President, Chief Executive Officer

Mark Ittel

Sr Vice President of Ports and Maritime, Board Member

James Bowers, AIA, NCARB and LEED AP

Sr. Cruise Facility Design Lead / Partner

Daniel Ramos, PE, WEDG

Director, Ports & Maritime Engineering / Senior Associate

Felipe Alespeiti, RA

Sr. Planner, Facility Planning & Design / Partner

Leah McKenny

Project Manager, Sr. Maritime Market & Financial Analyst / Senior Associate

Jim Rowe, AIA

Sr. Cruise Facility Design Lead / Partner / Board Member

Scott Bakos

Sr. Cruise Destination Design Lead / Partner / Board Member

Christopher De Leo

Maritime Business Project Analyst

CRUISE BULLETINS

How did 2022 end up and what happens next in 2023

2022 was a monumental transition year where operators placed ships back in operation throughout the first half of the year. After almost three years of uncertainty…

Ports should get ready for an increase in shorter itineraries

BA has just completed an analysis of the 2023 cruise capacity placement using its deployment database which has more than 10,000 sailings, 40 brands, and 300 ships worldwide, thus allowing BA to understand capacity placement by the industry…

2023 global passenger volumes will reach and very likely exceed 2019 levels but distributed differently

BA has just completed an analysis of the 2023 cruise capacity placement using its deployment database which has more than 10,000 sailings, 40 brands, and 300 ships worldwide, thus allowing BA to understand capacity placement by the industry…

Summary & Takeaways from Q3 Earnings Reports (CCL, RCG, NCLH)

A Normalizing Environment Paving Way for Strong 2023. The theme for CCL, RCG, and NCLH on this quarter’s earning calls was each company’s focus which has fully shifted from return to service to a relentless focus on return to strong profitability…

BA CRUISE BULLETIN – The Industry’s Quarterly Update from the Big Three (Public) Companies

This quarter’s earnings reports from Carnival Corp. (June 24), Royal Caribbean Group (July 28), and NCLH (August 9) have sent stocks down, up, and back down again, but overall, the business seems to have taken positive turns, including each company’s operating cash flow for the quarter…

Another Global Hurdle for the Cruise Industry? An Industry on the Rise

According to the most recent World Bank’s latest Global Economic Prospects Report, compounding the damage from the pandemic, the Russian invasion of Ukraine has magnified the slowdown in the global economy, which is entering what could become a protracted period of feeble growth and elevated inflation. The U.S. inflation rate passed 8.3%, the highest in more than 40 years, accompanied by the highest nationwide gas prices ever, and amidst the need for workers in many service industries, there have been layoffs in key tech sectors.

Big Three Cruise Corporations Q1 Earnings Summary

Resounding across all the major cruise operators’ quarterly earnings calls this week (CCLs in March), was that the industry (and each of the brands) have all reached “significant milestones” in their restart process that need to be celebrated. While 2022 is undoubtedly a transition year, 2023 appears to be shaping up to reach the industry’s full potential. NCLH’s presentation included the graphic below, which shows how far the industry has come over the last two and a half years of near-complete shutdown. In this newsletter, BA compares and summarizes key performance, financials, and trends across the big three cruise corporations based on their recent quarterly earnings calls.

The Pathway Forward Anticipates Substantial Cruise Growth, Are you Ready?

It has now been more than two years since the entire worldwide cruise tourism industry ground to a halt due to the Covid-19 pandemic and the subsequent government interventions that impacted all facets of our lives. For the past year, the industry has been slowly and meticulously resetting the onboard and shoreside guest experience through the development of protocols and procedures to get back to the business of cruising and providing people worldwide with great holidays!

BA Cruise Bulletin – Future of the Cruise Industry is Bright, According to the Major Cruise Lines

Protocols are Working, and Restoring Consumer Confidence in the Sector Many people have said in recent times that…

NEWS AND ANNOUNCEMENTS

Nassau Cruise Port opens May 2023

Nassau Cruise Port set to open in May 2023. BA’s scope includes master planning, urban design, architectural design, landscape architecture, civil engineering, and marine engineering services…

Inside the dynamic design of Royal Caribbean’s new Galveston cruise terminal

Royal Caribbean’s new $125m Galveston terminal, opening today, is not only designed as a world-first zero-energy cruise terminal, it’s a beauty of flow and efficiency…

Royal Caribbean to open world-first zero-energy cruise terminal at Galveston

“Set to Open Nov. 9th, 2022, Royal Caribbean Group’s new Galveston terminal will be the first cruise terminal to generate 100% of its needed energy through on-site solar panels”. as shown in a featured article in Seatrade Cruise News linked below…

Terminal 3 at the Port of Galveston for Royal Caribbean Group lights up for the 1st time!

Bermello Ajamil & Partners (BA) designs the first LEED (Leadership in Energy and Environmental Design) Gold facility in Texas…

Caen-Ouistreham partners with B&A Europe to develop cruise facilities

The port of Caen-Ouistreham and the destination Caen la Mer, Normandy hired port and destination development firm Bermello Ajamil & Partners Europe (B&A Europe) to assist with two projects: developing new cruise facilities at Nouveau Bassin and executing a study to evaluate further potential of the Nouveau Bassin area for cruise lines.

Port of Galveston celebrates Royal Caribbean’s Terminal 3 Top-off Party!

Royal Caribbean’s Terminal 3 at the Port of Galveston celebrated its top-off party on April 8th. The 170,000 square-foot building on 10 acres will feature mobile check-in and facial recognition to speed passenger processing, and it will be designed and developed sustainably to meet LEED certification standards…

PortMiami Terminal V Bulkhead  | 2022 Project of the Year Award, ASCE Miami-Dade Branch

Bermello Ajamil & Partners (BA) is honored to receive the 2022 ASCE Project of The Year Award for our innovative and unique design of PortMiami’s Terminal V Bulkhead to expand an existing cruise berth for Virgin Voyages Cruise Line…

Construction photos of the Mauritius Cruise Terminal at Port Louis Harbor, Mauritius

Bermello Ajamil & Partners, in association with local engineers GIBB Mauritius Ltd., was selected by the Mauritius Port Authority to design the 75,350-square-foot, $14 million cruise terminal at Port Louis Harbor, Mauritius. The design recalls natural volcanic stone textures, and colors of the sea…

AIA Award: NCL Terminal B Port Miami

BA was awarded the AIA Miami Honor Award of Excellence for Interior Architecture of Norwegian Cruise Line’s Terminal B at PortMiami. Terminal B will accommodate ships of up to 5,000 passengers, and feature new technology to support faster and more efficient embarkation and disembarkation processes, as well as expedited security screening and luggage check-in. The project will also feature a new parking garage with valet parking area with direct access to the terminal and lounge…

Financial & Management Consulting.

Bermello, Ajamil & Partners has been assisting Port Authorities, Private Companies and Governments in evaluating financial and management aspects of their port operations for over 20 years throughout the world. BA has the most experience in assisting the development and finance of ports and in particularly cruise ports. Our work includes not only the development of the financial and business plan from which negotiations can take place but to the actual negotiation and drafting of user agreements between the parties.

Among Our Services:

Negotiations

The negotiations between cruise lines and ports or governments can take a variety of directions or strategies

  • Memorandum of Understandings: Where parties agree to cooperate, but not necessarily guarantee traffic or funds.
  • Usage Agreements: Win which cruise lines agree to guarantee a minimum annual number of passengers usually linked to specific tariffs or rates. These types of agreements usually impose limitations in terms of future rate increases as well as requirements for preferential berth guarantees.

  • Financial Guarantees: Linked to annual payments. Like usage agreements, these usually also have some form of linkage to tariff and preferential benefits.

  • Direct Investment: these are agreements where cruise lines have provided funding as a loan to a government in return for certain benefits like preferential berthing. These types of loans usually carry payment provisions with interest.

In some cases, BA has taken the lead position of negotiating agreements and in others BA has been providing the consultation to the Government or Owner behind the scenes. Since BA has been involved in so many of these deals, BA maintains a library of typical agreements. 

Our Negotiation Experience includes:

Financial Modeling
Bermello, Ajamil & Partners has one of the most robust financial modeling practices for cruise ports in the world and can custom tailor the financial model to replicate the condition being studied based on the business model and concession agreement that is planned.

Typically, BA builds an interactive model that would allow the Owner, banks or other parties the ability to test and understand different variables, and easily create sensitivity analysis that can be used for negotiations by allowing studies of different tariffs or rate structures. The models are sensitive to the operating conditions of the area and will also be sensitive to utilization.

Comparative tariff studies:

BA has performed a significant number of comparative tariff studies for ports throughout the Caribbean and the world including:

Supporting project financing:

BA has developed financial models and has participated with underwriters, banks, rating agencies in the raising of capital for Port projects including:

Below is some of the most recent work that BA has also completed modeling for the following cruise
operations:

Leadership
Maritime

Luis Ajamil, PE

President, CEO, Principal-in-Charge

Mark Ittel

Sr Vice President of Ports and Maritime, Board Member

James Bowers, AIA, NCARB and LEED AP

Sr. Cruise Facility Design Lead / Partner

Daniel Ramos, PE, WEDG

Director, Ports & Maritime Engineering / Senior Associate

Felipe Alespeiti, RA

Sr. Planner, Facility Planning & Design / Partner

Leah McKenny

Project Manager, Sr. Maritime Market & Financial Analyst / Senior Associate

Jim Rowe, AIA

Sr. Cruise Facility Design Lead / Partner / Board Member

Scott Bakos

Sr. Cruise Destination Design Lead / Partner / Board Member

Christopher De Leo

Maritime Business Project Analyst

CRUISE BULLETINS

How did 2022 end up and what happens next in 2023

2022 was a monumental transition year where operators placed ships back in operation throughout the first half of the year. After almost three years of uncertainty…

Ports should get ready for an increase in shorter itineraries

BA has just completed an analysis of the 2023 cruise capacity placement using its deployment database which has more than 10,000 sailings, 40 brands, and 300 ships worldwide, thus allowing BA to understand capacity placement by the industry…

2023 global passenger volumes will reach and very likely exceed 2019 levels but distributed differently

BA has just completed an analysis of the 2023 cruise capacity placement using its deployment database which has more than 10,000 sailings, 40 brands, and 300 ships worldwide, thus allowing BA to understand capacity placement by the industry…

Summary & Takeaways from Q3 Earnings Reports (CCL, RCG, NCLH)

A Normalizing Environment Paving Way for Strong 2023. The theme for CCL, RCG, and NCLH on this quarter’s earning calls was each company’s focus which has fully shifted from return to service to a relentless focus on return to strong profitability…

BA CRUISE BULLETIN – The Industry’s Quarterly Update from the Big Three (Public) Companies

This quarter’s earnings reports from Carnival Corp. (June 24), Royal Caribbean Group (July 28), and NCLH (August 9) have sent stocks down, up, and back down again, but overall, the business seems to have taken positive turns, including each company’s operating cash flow for the quarter…

Another Global Hurdle for the Cruise Industry? An Industry on the Rise

According to the most recent World Bank’s latest Global Economic Prospects Report, compounding the damage from the pandemic, the Russian invasion of Ukraine has magnified the slowdown in the global economy, which is entering what could become a protracted period of feeble growth and elevated inflation. The U.S. inflation rate passed 8.3%, the highest in more than 40 years, accompanied by the highest nationwide gas prices ever, and amidst the need for workers in many service industries, there have been layoffs in key tech sectors.

Big Three Cruise Corporations Q1 Earnings Summary

Resounding across all the major cruise operators’ quarterly earnings calls this week (CCLs in March), was that the industry (and each of the brands) have all reached “significant milestones” in their restart process that need to be celebrated. While 2022 is undoubtedly a transition year, 2023 appears to be shaping up to reach the industry’s full potential. NCLH’s presentation included the graphic below, which shows how far the industry has come over the last two and a half years of near-complete shutdown. In this newsletter, BA compares and summarizes key performance, financials, and trends across the big three cruise corporations based on their recent quarterly earnings calls.

The Pathway Forward Anticipates Substantial Cruise Growth, Are you Ready?

It has now been more than two years since the entire worldwide cruise tourism industry ground to a halt due to the Covid-19 pandemic and the subsequent government interventions that impacted all facets of our lives. For the past year, the industry has been slowly and meticulously resetting the onboard and shoreside guest experience through the development of protocols and procedures to get back to the business of cruising and providing people worldwide with great holidays!

BA Cruise Bulletin – Future of the Cruise Industry is Bright, According to the Major Cruise Lines

Protocols are Working, and Restoring Consumer Confidence in the Sector Many people have said in recent times that…

NEWS AND ANNOUNCEMENTS

Nassau Cruise Port opens May 2023

Nassau Cruise Port set to open in May 2023. BA’s scope includes master planning, urban design, architectural design, landscape architecture, civil engineering, and marine engineering services…

Inside the dynamic design of Royal Caribbean’s new Galveston cruise terminal

Royal Caribbean’s new $125m Galveston terminal, opening today, is not only designed as a world-first zero-energy cruise terminal, it’s a beauty of flow and efficiency…

Royal Caribbean to open world-first zero-energy cruise terminal at Galveston

“Set to Open Nov. 9th, 2022, Royal Caribbean Group’s new Galveston terminal will be the first cruise terminal to generate 100% of its needed energy through on-site solar panels”. as shown in a featured article in Seatrade Cruise News linked below…

Terminal 3 at the Port of Galveston for Royal Caribbean Group lights up for the 1st time!

Bermello Ajamil & Partners (BA) designs the first LEED (Leadership in Energy and Environmental Design) Gold facility in Texas…

Caen-Ouistreham partners with B&A Europe to develop cruise facilities

The port of Caen-Ouistreham and the destination Caen la Mer, Normandy hired port and destination development firm Bermello Ajamil & Partners Europe (B&A Europe) to assist with two projects: developing new cruise facilities at Nouveau Bassin and executing a study to evaluate further potential of the Nouveau Bassin area for cruise lines.

Port of Galveston celebrates Royal Caribbean’s Terminal 3 Top-off Party!

Royal Caribbean’s Terminal 3 at the Port of Galveston celebrated its top-off party on April 8th. The 170,000 square-foot building on 10 acres will feature mobile check-in and facial recognition to speed passenger processing, and it will be designed and developed sustainably to meet LEED certification standards…

PortMiami Terminal V Bulkhead  | 2022 Project of the Year Award, ASCE Miami-Dade Branch

Bermello Ajamil & Partners (BA) is honored to receive the 2022 ASCE Project of The Year Award for our innovative and unique design of PortMiami’s Terminal V Bulkhead to expand an existing cruise berth for Virgin Voyages Cruise Line…

Construction photos of the Mauritius Cruise Terminal at Port Louis Harbor, Mauritius

Bermello Ajamil & Partners, in association with local engineers GIBB Mauritius Ltd., was selected by the Mauritius Port Authority to design the 75,350-square-foot, $14 million cruise terminal at Port Louis Harbor, Mauritius. The design recalls natural volcanic stone textures, and colors of the sea…

AIA Award: NCL Terminal B Port Miami

BA was awarded the AIA Miami Honor Award of Excellence for Interior Architecture of Norwegian Cruise Line’s Terminal B at PortMiami. Terminal B will accommodate ships of up to 5,000 passengers, and feature new technology to support faster and more efficient embarkation and disembarkation processes, as well as expedited security screening and luggage check-in. The project will also feature a new parking garage with valet parking area with direct access to the terminal and lounge…

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