NCL Corp. said yesterday that continued weakness in ticket pricing for its Hawai'i cruise operations contributed to the company's $24.6 million loss in the second quarter.

"Our second-quarter results reflect the challenges we continue to face in Hawai'i," said Colin Veitch, president and chief executive officer of NCL Corp.

Still, higher revenues in the second quarter helped the company improve from a $35.1 million loss in the second quarter of 2006. The Miami-based cruise ship company said revenues rose to $553.1 million in the second quarter, up 10 percent from the same period a year earlier.

NCL Corp. said last week that its money-losing Hawai'i interisland cruises will come up for a review next year, when the company will decide whether to continue them. That announcement came a few months after the company said it will pull one of its three Hawai'i-based ships — the Pride of Hawai'i — from the state in February.

The ship will be renamed Norwegian Jade and sent to Europe for the summer of 2008, running under a foreign flag operation, which is less expensive to run.

The company disclosed the review of its Hawai'i operations when it announced a pending $1 billion cash infusion from one of the nation's largest private equity companies, Apollo Management LP. Apollo will become a 50 percent owner of NCL, which will use the money to pay down debt and help expand its operations.

Company officials said its second-quarter losses were driven primarily by being forced by competition to reduce ticket pricing for the Hawai'i operations, as well as lower onboard revenues.

NCL officials said profits also have been hurt by rising interest rates and the weakened U.S. dollar against the euro.

In addition, the company noted an increase in average outstanding borrowings following the deliveries of the Pride of Hawai'i and Norwegian Pearl, and interest expense that increased approximately 25 percent to $40.8 million in the second quarter of 2007 from $32.5 million in the year-ago quarter.

"However, as we look out to 2008 we have positive indications that the measures we have implemented thus far are beginning to work," Veitch said. "These indications, the success of our new building program and our new shareholder and related equity investment makes it a very exciting time at NCL Corporation."

NCL Corp. has a fleet of 14 ships in service and under construction. The corporation oversees the operations of Norwegian Cruise Line, NCL America, and Orient Lines. The company recently took delivery of its newest ship, the Norwegian Pearl, and is building the Norwegian Gem for delivery in October. The company also plans to build three new ships for delivery between 2009 and 2011.

Reach Robbie Dingeman at rdingeman@honoluluadvertiser.com.