Carnival Cruises 2011 Annual Report Download - page 4

2016, with three of them scheduled to enter service this year. Our current intention is to have an average of two to three new cruise ships enter
service annually, some of which will replace older ships. Slower supply growth across the cruise industry and a gradual pick-up in demand as
global economies recover and emerging markets further develop should positively impact our ability to profitably grow our business in all
regions, while our free cash flow generation will benefit from our conservative pace of new ship construction.
Strengthening our Long-Standing Commitment to Safety and Sustainability
For us, safety and sustainability have always been at the heart of how we do business. We will redouble our efforts to regain the trust of
prospective and repeat customers as well as of the communities where we do business and all other stakeholders. In the aftermath of the
Concordia incident, we have initiated a comprehensive review of all our procedures and processes.
I wanted to take this opportunity to highlight our company’s long-standing commitment to strong safety practices. Captains and deck officers
across our fleet are among the most experienced, well-trained masters at sea receiving a variety of technical and other training on an ongoing
basis. All of our ships are equipped with advanced navigation technology and our officers are expertly trained in its use. The corporation operates
its own technical training facility and simulator (CSMART) in Almere, Netherlands, which provides bridge team management courses. That
facility is the most advanced of its kind in the maritime industry.
The boards of directors of Carnival Corporation & plc have in place a board-level Health, Environmental, Safety & Security (HESS) Committee
to assist the board in fulfilling their responsibility to supervise and monitor HESS policies, programs, initiatives and compliance with HESS legal
and regulatory requirements. Our corporate Maritime Policy & Compliance Department is headed by a Senior Vice President and retired U.S.
Navy captain. He is responsible for providing an integrated approach to management of HESS matters and for reporting to the HESS Committee
on such matters.
As part of our sustainability commitment, we go beyond compliance with regulations and take our responsibility to address sustainability-related
issues very seriously. We are on track to achieve our target to reduce the level of our 2015 shipboard carbon dioxide emissions rate by 20 percent
from our 2005 baseline. In 2011, we published our first Corporate-level Sustainability Report, continuing the process we began over six years
ago, of informing our stakeholders about our sustainability policies, practices and performance. By publishing sustainability reports we can
benchmark our collective performance and identify improvement opportunities. The information in these reports better equips us to address
sustainability challenges and advance as a global company.
Thanks and Recognition
I would like to take this opportunity to thank all of our shareholders, as well as our valued 90,000 employees both shipboard and shoreside, for
their efforts in enabling Carnival Corporation & plc to maintain its leadership position in the cruise industry. I would also like to express my
appreciation to our talented management teams as well as our board of directors for their vision, foresight and support during this challenging
year.
I would like to acknowledge Uzi Zucker, who will be leaving our board later this year. Uzi was part of our original board when we went public in
1987 and his contributions to our company over the past 25 years are immeasurable. All the members of the Carnival family, and I most of all,
will miss his guidance and insight.
I would also like to acknowledge Sherwood M. “Woody” Weiser who passed away last year. Woody was an original member of our board of
directors and served on the board until 2003. Our condolences to the Weiser family. He will be missed.
As I close this message, my heart goes out to the thousands of people whose lives have been affected by the Costa Concordia accident, the
families of the deceased and missing, the passengers and crew, and their loved ones. I would like to thank the Italian authorities and rescue
personnel, as well as the countless and often nameless heroes who offered help. In addition, I want to express our appreciation for the support
provided to us by the local population of the beautiful Island of Giglio.
Carnival Corporation & plc is a strong company. Our performance in 2011 is a clear testimonial to our ability to bounce back and to build on our
leadership positions. Our strength will enable us to do right by all who have suffered from the accident earlier this year, to take all the measures
needed across our organizations to ensure this never happens again, and to make sure all of our brands are synonymous with beautiful vacation
memories for another 40 years and more. Our long-term fundamentals are particularly attractive in an environment where consumers around the
world increasingly value the importance of their holidays, and we will continue to work hard on achieving this potential for the benefit of all our
stakeholders.
Sincerely,
Micky Arison
Chairman & CEO
Carnival Corporation & plc
February 21, 2012
3