Commitments and Contingencies
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Sep. 30, 2013
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Dec. 31, 2012
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Commitments and Contingencies |
Ship Construction Contracts Norwegian Getaway is under construction with Meyer Werft and is scheduled for delivery in January 2014. This ship will be approximately 144,000 Gross Tons with 4,000 Berths at an aggregate cost of approximately €627.7 million, or $849.1 million based on the euro/U.S. dollar exchange rate as of September 30, 2013. We have export credit financing in place that provides financing for 90% of its contract price. We also have orders with Meyer Werft for two additional ships for delivery in the fourth quarter of 2015 and the first quarter of 2017. These ships, Norwegian Escape and Norwegian Bliss, will be the largest in our fleet at approximately 163,000 Gross Tons with 4,200 Berths each and will be similar in design and innovation to our Breakaway Class Ships. The combined contract cost of these two additional ships is approximately €1.4 billion, or $1.9 billion based on the euro/U.S. dollar exchange rate as of September 30, 2013. We have export credit financing in place that provides financing for 80% of their contract price. In connection with the contracts to build the ships, we do not anticipate any contractual breaches or cancellation to occur. However, if any would 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.
Litigation In July 2009, a class action complaint was filed against NCL (Bahamas) Ltd. in the United States District Court, Southern District of Florida, on behalf of a purported class of crew members alleging inappropriate deductions of their wages pursuant to the Seaman’s Wage Act and wrongful termination resulting in a loss of retirement benefits. In December 2010, the Court denied the plaintiffs’ Motion for Class Certification. In February 2011, the plaintiffs filed a Motion for Reconsideration as to the Court’s Order on Class Certification which was denied. The Court tried six individual plaintiffs’ claims, and in September 2012 awarded wages aggregating approximately $100,000 to such plaintiffs. In October 2013, the United States Court of Appeals for the Eleventh Circuit affirmed the Court’s rulings as to the denial of class certification and the trial verdict. We intend to continue to vigorously defend this action and are not able at this time to estimate the impact of these proceedings. In May 2011, a class action complaint was filed against NCL (Bahamas) Ltd. in the United States District Court, Southern District of Florida, on behalf of a purported class of crew members alleging inappropriate deductions of their wages pursuant to the Seaman’s Wage Act and breach of contract. In July 2012, this action was stayed by the Court pending the outcome of the litigation commenced with the class action complaint filed in July 2009. We are vigorously defending this action and are not able at this time to estimate the impact of these proceedings. 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 contingent losses beyond those accrued, as discovery is not complete nor is adequate information available to estimate such range of loss or potential recovery. We intend to vigorously defend our legal position on all claims and, to the extent necessary, seek recovery. |
Operating Leases Total expense under non-cancelable operating lease commitments, primarily for offices, motor vehicles and office equipment was $9.5 million, $9.1 million and $12.4 million for the years ended December 31, 2012, 2011and 2010, respectively.
As of December 31, 2012, minimum annual rentals for non-cancelable leases with initial or remaining terms in excess of one year were as follows (in thousands):
Rental payments applicable to such operating leases are recognized on a straight-line basis over the term of the lease. Ship Construction Contracts In September 2010, we reached an agreement with a shipyard to build two new next generation Freestyle Cruising ships Norwegian Breakaway and Norwegian Getaway with financing commitments in place from a syndicate of banks for export credit financing. These ships, each at approximately 144,000 Gross Tons and 4,000 Berths, are scheduled for delivery in the second quarter of 2013 and first quarter of 2014, respectively. The aggregate contract price of the two ships is approximately €1.3 billion, or $1.7 billion based on the euro/U.S. dollar exchange rate as of December 31, 2012. In October 2012, we reached an agreement with Meyer Werft GmbH of Papenburg, Germany to build a new cruise ship for delivery in the fourth quarter of 2015 with an option to build a second ship with an expected delivery date in spring 2017. Currently referred to as “Breakaway Plus,” this new ship will be the largest in our fleet at approximately 163,000 Gross Tons and 4,200 Berths and will be similar in design and innovation to our current Breakaway class ships which are currently under construction. The contract cost of this ship is approximately €698.4 million, or $921.4 million based on the euro/U.S. dollar exchange rate as of December 31, 2012. We entered into an export credit facility that provides financing for 80% of the contract price of the ship. In addition, we have an option in place for export credit financing for the second ship on similar terms. In connection with the contracts to build the three ships, we do not anticipate any contractual breaches or cancellation to occur. However, if any would 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, 2012, minimum annual payments for non-cancelable ship construction contracts with initial or remaining terms in excess of one year were as follows (in thousands):
Port Facility Commitments As of December 31, 2012, future commitments to pay for usage of certain port facilities were as follows (in thousands):
The U.S. Federal Maritime Commission 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, we are required to maintain a $15.0 million third-party performance guarantee on our behalf in respect of liabilities for non-performance of transportation and other obligations to passengers. Proposed regulations would revise the financial requirements with respect to both death/injury and non-performance coverages. Also we have a legal requirement for us to maintain a security guarantee based on cruise business originated from the United Kingdom and have a bond with the Association of British Travel Agents currently valued at British Pound Sterling 3.2 million. We also are required to establish financial responsibility by other jurisdictions to meet liability in the event of non-performance of our obligations to passengers from those jurisdictions. Litigation In July 2009, a class action complaint was filed against NCL (Bahamas) Ltd. in the United States District Court, Southern District of Florida, on behalf of a purported class of crew members alleging inappropriate deductions of their wages pursuant to the Seaman’s Wage Act and wrongful termination resulting in a loss of retirement benefits. In December 2010, the Court denied the plaintiffs’ Motion for Class Certification. In February 2011, the plaintiffs filed a Motion for Reconsideration as to the Court’s Order on Class Certification which was denied. The Court tried six individual plaintiffs’ claims, and in September 2012 awarded wages aggregating approximately $100,000 to such plaintiffs. The plaintiffs’ have filed an appeal of the Court’s decision in the individual actions as well as the denial of the Class Certification. We intend to vigorously defend this appeal and are not able at this time to estimate the impact of these proceedings. In May 2011, a class action complaint was filed against NCL (Bahamas) Ltd. in the United States District Court, Southern District of Florida, on behalf of a purported class of crew members alleging inappropriate deductions of their wages pursuant to the Seaman’s Wage Act and breach of contract. In July 2012 this action was stayed by the Court pending the outcome of the litigation commenced with the class action complaint filed in July 2009. We are vigorously defending this action and are not able at this time to estimate the impact of these proceedings. 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 contingent losses beyond those accrued, as discovery is not complete nor is adequate information available to estimate such range of loss or potential recovery. We intend to vigorously defend our legal position on all claims and, to the extent necessary, seek recovery. |