(Bloomberg) — Carnival Corp., the world's largest cruise operator, formed a joint venture with Spanish travel company Orizonia Corp. to operate two cruise ships in Spain.Orizonia's Iberojet Cruceros division will transfer its two vessels to the joint venture, Miami-based Carnival said today in a statement.

Carnival, which will own 75 percent of the joint venture, valued the partnership at [EURO]320 million ($415.7 million), excluding [EURO]180 million in debt.

Carnival may contribute its own ships to the joint venture in coming years.

The US company already operates ships in Spain under its Costa Cruises line, and is expanding in Europe as demand for Caribbean vacations wanes.

Carnival said it expects the agreement to be completed in the second quarter. It won't affect earnings for the 12-month period following the closing.

Orizonia, which traces its origins back to 1930, was acquired by buyouts firms the Carlyle Group and Vista Capital in July 2006 from Iberostar Group.

Royal Caribbean Cruises Ltd., a rival to Carnival, has also entered the Spanish market. Last year the company, the world's second-largest cruise operator, bought Spanish cruise operator Pullmantur SA for [EURO]430 million.

The UK research company Ocean Shipping Consultants Ltd. has said that the European cruise market will surge 84 percent to 5.9 million passengers by 2015.