A Maltese-registered cruise ship, Clelia II, carrying 160 people on a return trip from Antarctica, broke down in rough weather on Tuesday, online news wires reported, quoting the Argentine navy.

No one was hurt in the incident after the ship lost power in one of its engines. Crews managed to fix the problem and the ship was back on its way to the city Ushuaia in high seas.

The vessel, owned by Polar Cruises and described on its website as a refurbished, ice-strengthened, all-suite luxury cruise ship, telephoned its emergency to a search and rescue coordination centre in Ushuaia, its port of destination, 3,200km south of Buenos Aires.

The engine failure occurred in the Drake Passage off the southern tip of South America, where the ship faced stormy conditions including winds of 90km/h.

The Clelia II set sail from Ushuaia on November 30 on a week-long cruise to the Antarctic continent.