Royal Caribbean Purchases Spanish Cruise Line

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In a move to further expand its European and Latin American operations, Royal Caribbean Cruises Ltd. (NYSE, OSE: RCL) today announced its agreement to purchase Pullmantur S.A., a Madrid-based cruise and tour operator. Royal Caribbean expects the acquisition to be completed by the fourth quarter of 2006, subject to regulatory approvals

Pullmantur, formed in 1971, is the largest cruise operator in Spain. It has two primary business interests: cruises and tour operations. Its cruise division consists of five ships operating in Europe and Latin America. Its tour operations sells travel packages to Spanish guests – including hotel and flights – primarily to Caribbean resorts, and sells travel packages to Europe aimed at Latin American customers. Pullmantur also has a small air business that operates three aircraft in support of its cruise and tour. Pullmantur has offices in Spain and Portugal, with approximately 2,600 employees, and will be Royal Caribbean’s first wholly-owned European brand. Royal Caribbean has signed an agreement with the shareholders of Pullmantur to buy all of the capital stock of the company for €430 million, plus Pullmantur’s net debt of approximately €270 million. Royal Caribbean has obtained a committed bridge facility to support the purchase. As part of the transaction, Pullmantur will be withdrawing from all Cuba-related activities prior to closing.

Right now we don’t have any word if this will effect on of the line’s offerings in Europe or elsewhere in the world.