The cruise ship will begin operations on June 15, following a significant transition after Genting Hong Kong’s financial troubles.
SINGAPORE: The Genting Dream cruise ship, previously operated by Dream Cruises, will begin sailing from Singapore starting June 15 under a newly established entity, Resorts World Cruises. This move comes after a two-year hiatus prompted by pandemic-related uncertainties.
Resorts World Cruises was founded by Malaysian tycoon Lim Kok Thay, chairman and board executive of Genting Group, and was registered on March 9. This followed Genting Hong Kong’s announcement to wind up operations after failing to secure the necessary funding to pay its debts.
Dream Cruises once boasted a fleet of three vessels: Genting Dream, Explorer Dream, and World Dream. Currently, Resorts World Cruises has taken over the Genting Dream and is in talks with banks and other interested parties regarding the potential acquisition of the remaining ships.
World Dream, which previously offered cruises to nowhere from Singapore, ceased taking new bookings on March 2 due to its parent company’s financial difficulties.
As a gesture of goodwill, Resorts World Cruises announced that it will provide complimentary cruise credits of equivalent value to passengers affected by World Dream’s cancellations in Singapore between March 2 and August 31. These credits will be valid from June 15 until the end of March 2023.
At a news conference on May 18, the company clarified that this offer is only applicable to customers who have not yet received refunds for their original bookings. According to Michael Goh, president and head of international sales of Resorts World Cruises, approximately 13,000 customers were affected, although many have reportedly received refunds through credit card companies.
The Fate of Genting Hong Kong
On January 19, Genting Hong Kong, which owns Dream Cruises, Crystal Cruises, and Star Cruises, filed for bankruptcy following a staggering US$1.7 billion loss in 2020 and a further US$743 million loss in the first half of 2021. Its shipbuilding subsidiary, MV Werften, also declared insolvency in Germany after failing to secure funding to complete its Global One mega-liner.
At the time of its financial troubles, Genting Hong Kong was 76% owned by Lim Kok Thay, who later filed a petition in Bermuda to wind up the company and appoint provisional liquidators, citing a depletion of cash by the end of January and no access to additional funding. The company stated that it had “exhausted all reasonable efforts” to negotiate with creditors.
A New Beginning
Despite taking over the Genting Dream vessel, Resorts World Cruises maintains that it is independent from Genting Hong Kong. “The provisional liquidator could not revive the Dream Cruises brand, so we worked with the Chinese lessors, who are the owners of the ship, to restart the cruise under the Resorts World brand,” stated Colin Au, CEO and executive director of Resorts World Cruises and former deputy CEO of Genting Hong Kong.
Mr. Au emphasized, “This new brand has nothing to do with Genting Hong Kong; it’s a completely new cruise brand.” Both he and Mr. Lim resigned from their positions at Genting Hong Kong in January, following the company’s decision to wind down operations. Trading of Genting Hong Kong’s shares has been suspended since January 18 and will remain so until further notice.
Focus on Recovery and Growth
When asked about the new company’s launch, Mr. Au remarked, “It’s in everybody’s objective to return to normal as quickly as possible to protect jobs and foster economic growth.” According to a company spokesperson, Resorts World Cruises has re-employed about 1,700 former employees in Singapore, including 1,600 crew members from Genting Dream and around 70 from the Singapore office.
While some employees from Genting Hong Kong’s office were laid off without retrenchment benefits, Mr. Au noted that the launch of the new cruise would help generate additional revenue for the Singapore Cruise Centre.
With a strong market appetite for cruises in the region, including destinations like Thailand, Malaysia, and India, Mr. Goh expressed confidence in Resorts World Cruises’ ability to meet demand.
The Genting Dream will offer several cruises to nowhere departing from Singapore on Wednesdays, Fridays, and Sundays, with plans to introduce destination cruises to Malaysia, Thailand, and Indonesia starting September 30.
