Annual report pursuant to Section 13 and 15(d)

Commitments and Contingencies

v3.22.4
Commitments and Contingencies
12 Months Ended
Dec. 31, 2022
Commitments And Contingencies Disclosure [Abstract]  
Commitments and Contingencies

13.

Commitments and Contingencies

Ship Construction Contracts

For the Norwegian brand, the first Prima Class Ship, Norwegian Prima, at approximately 143,500 Gross Tons and with 3,100 Berths, was delivered in July 2022. We have five Prima Class Ships on order, each ranging from approximately 143,500 to 169,000 Gross Tons with 3,100 or more Berths, with currently scheduled delivery dates from 2023 through 2028. For the Regent brand, we have one Explorer Class Ship on order to be delivered in 2023, which will be

approximately 55,000 Gross Tons and 750 Berths. For the Oceania Cruises brand, we have orders for two Allura Class Ships to be delivered in 2023 and 2025. Each of the Allura Class Ships will be approximately 67,000 Gross Tons and 1,200 Berths. The impacts of COVID-19 on the shipyards where our ships are under construction (or will be constructed), Russia’s ongoing invasion of Ukraine, initiatives to improve environmental sustainability and modifications the Company plans to make to its newbuilds and/or other macroeconomic events have resulted in delays in expected ship deliveries. These and other impacts could result in additional delays in ship deliveries in the future, which may be prolonged.

As of December 31, 2022, the combined contract prices of the eight ships on order for delivery was approximately €6.7 billion, or $7.2 billion based on the euro/U.S. dollar exchange rate as of December 31, 2022. Subsequent to December 31, 2022, we have entered into amendments for our ships on order which increase the contract price by €0.3 billion, or $0.3 billion based on the euro/U.S. dollar exchange rate as of December 31, 2022 and revised the delivery date of two ships. We have obtained or expect to obtain fixed rate export-credit backed financing for the ships on order which is expected to fund approximately 80% of each contract price, subject to certain conditions. We do not anticipate any contractual breaches or cancellation to occur. However, if any such events were to occur, it could result in, among other things, the forfeiture of prior deposits or payments made by us and potential claims and impairment losses which may materially impact our business, financial condition and results of operations.

As of December 31, 2022, minimum annual payments for non-cancelable ship construction contracts with initial or remaining terms in excess of one year were as follows (in thousands):

Year

    

Amount

2023

$

2,198,897

2024

 

275,232

2025

 

1,617,782

2026

 

1,827,114

2027

 

842,581

Thereafter

 

Total minimum annual payments

$

6,761,606

After giving effect to the amendments for our ships on order subsequent to December 31, 2022, minimum annual payments for non-cancelable ship construction contracts with initial or remaining terms in excess of one year were as follows (in thousands):

Year

    

Amount

2023

$

2,204,378

2024

 

213,353

2025

 

1,573,183

2026

 

1,071,080

2027

 

1,021,461

Thereafter

 

952,200

Total minimum annual payments

$

7,035,655

Port Facility Commitments

As of December 31, 2022, future commitments to pay for usage of certain port facilities were as follows (in thousands):

Year

    

Amount

2023

$

85,805

2024

 

54,539

2025

 

34,337

2026

 

30,258

2027

 

28,146

Thereafter

 

546,523

Total port facility future commitments

$

779,608

Other Commitments

The FMC requires evidence of financial responsibility for those offering transportation on passenger ships operating out of U.S. ports to indemnify passengers in the event of non-performance of the transportation. Accordingly, each of our three brands is required to maintain a $32.0 million third-party performance guarantee in respect of liabilities for non-performance of transportation and other obligations to passengers. The guarantee requirements are subject to additional consumer price index-based adjustments.

In addition, our brands have a legal requirement to maintain security guarantees based on cruise business originated from the U.K., and we are required to establish financial responsibility by certain jurisdictions to meet liability in the event of non-performance of our obligations to passengers from those jurisdictions. As of December 31, 2022, we have in place approximately £68.6 million of security guarantees for our brands as well as a consumer protection policy covering up to £82.4 million. The Company has provided approximately $29.7 million in cash to secure all the financial security guarantees required.

From time to time, various other regulatory and legislative changes have been or may in the future be proposed that may have an effect on our operations in the U.S. and the cruise industry in general.

Litigation

Investigations

In March 2020, the Florida Attorney General announced an investigation related to the Company’s marketing during the COVID-19 pandemic. Following the announcement of the investigation by the Florida Attorney General, we received notifications from other attorneys general and governmental agencies that they are conducting similar investigations. The Company is cooperating with these ongoing investigations, the outcomes of which cannot be predicted at this time.

Helms-Burton Act

On August 27, 2019, two lawsuits were filed against Norwegian Cruise Line Holdings Ltd. in the United States District Court for the Southern District of Florida under Title III of the Cuban Liberty and Solidarity (Libertad) Act of 1996, also known as the Helms-Burton Act. The complaint filed by Javier Garcia-Bengochea (the “Garcia-Bengochea Matter”) alleges that he holds an interest in the Port of Santiago, Cuba, and the complaint filed by Havana Docks Corporation (the “Havana Docks Matter”) alleges it holds an interest in the Havana Cruise Port Terminal, both of which were expropriated by the Cuban Government. The complaints further allege that the Company “trafficked” in those properties by embarking and disembarking passengers at these facilities, as well as profiting from the Cuban Government’s possession of the property. The plaintiffs seek all available statutory remedies, including the value of the expropriated property, plus interest, treble damages, attorneys’ fees and costs. On September 1, 2020, the district court in the Garcia-Bengochea Matter entered an order staying all case deadlines and administratively closed the case pending the outcome of an appeal in a related case brought by the same plaintiff, in which the district court granted another cruise line defendant judgment on the pleadings. As to the appeal in the related case, in November 2022, the Eleventh Circuit issued

an opinion affirming the dismissal and, on February 8, 2023, issued its mandate to the district court. The Company intends to take further action in the district court to dispose of its case due to the case being identically positioned to the related case which was dismissed. As a next step in that process, the parties plan to jointly seek further stay of the district court case pending the earlier of any of the following events: (1) the period within which plaintiff has to petition the United States Supreme Court for writ of certiorari (including any extensions) expires, (2) the United States Supreme Court denies any such petition for writ of certiorari, or (3) the case is resolved by action in United States Supreme Court. In the Havana Docks Matter, after various motions challenging the sufficiency of plaintiff’s complaint were resolved and voluminous discovery was completed, both sides filed motions for summary judgment. On March 21, 2022, the court issued an order granting plaintiff’s motion for summary judgment on the issue of liability and denying the Company’s cross-motion for summary judgment. The court scheduled a trial on determination of damages only for November 2022. The plaintiff elected to seek what the court ruled to be its baseline statutory damage amount, which was the amount of the certified claim plus interest, trebled and with attorneys’ fees. Given this, there was no fact issue to be tried, and the matter was removed from the trial calendar. On December 30, 2022, the court entered a final judgment of approximately $112.9 million and, on January 23, 2023, the Company filed a notice of appeal from that judgment. For the Havana Docks Matter, we believe that the likelihood of loss is reasonably possible but not probable at this time; therefore, no liability has been recorded. For the Garcia Bengochea Matter, we are unable to reasonably estimate any potential loss or range of losses. The ability to make such estimates and judgments can be affected by various factors including, among other things: lack of legal precedent, stage of the proceedings, legal uncertainties inherent within the litigation process, availment of appellate remedies, and involvement of numerous parties. We continue to believe we have meritorious defenses to these matters. However, if the plaintiffs prevail in the final outcome of these matters, there may be a material adverse impact on the Company’s financial condition, results of operations and/or cash flows.

Other

We are a party to a claim against a vendor which has resulted in a verdict of approximately $159 million in favor of the Company in October 2022. At this time, there can be no assurance that the Company will ultimately prevail in the final outcome of this claim as the vendor filed a notice of appeal in February 2023 and no receivable has been recognized.

In the normal course of our business, various other claims and lawsuits have been filed or are pending against us. Most of these claims and lawsuits are covered by insurance and, accordingly, the maximum amount of our liability is typically limited to our deductible amount. Nonetheless, the ultimate outcome of these claims and lawsuits that are not covered by insurance cannot be determined at this time. We have evaluated our overall exposure with respect to all of our threatened and pending litigation and, to the extent required, we have accrued amounts for all estimable probable losses associated with our deemed exposure. We are currently unable to estimate any other potential losses beyond those accrued, as discovery is not complete nor is adequate information available to estimate such range of loss or potential recovery. However, based on our current knowledge, we do not believe that the aggregate amount or range of reasonably possible losses with respect to these matters will be material to our consolidated results of operations, financial condition or cash flows. We intend to vigorously defend our legal position on all claims and, to the extent necessary, seek recovery.

Other Contingencies

The Company also has agreements with its credit card processors that govern approximately $2.4 billion in advance ticket sales as of December 31, 2022 that have been received by the Company relating to future voyages. These agreements allow the credit card processors to require under certain circumstances, including the existence of a material adverse change, excessive chargebacks and other triggering events, that the Company maintain a reserve which would be satisfied by posting collateral. Although the agreements vary, these requirements may generally be satisfied either through a percentage of customer payments withheld or providing cash funds directly to the card processor. Any cash reserve or collateral requested could be increased or decreased. As of December 31, 2022, we had cash reserves of approximately $622.0 million with credit card processors of which approximately $118.4 million is recognized in accounts receivable, net and approximately $503.6 million in other long-term assets. As of December 31, 2022, a portion of the cash reserves is classified as long-term due to a change in terms to a static reserve, as currently required by a credit card processor, subject to periodic review. We may be required to pledge additional collateral and/or post additional cash reserves or take other actions that may reduce our liquidity.