Superyacht News

What happens when there are editorial gaps in a newspaper? According to Mark de Jong, Marketing Manager for Superyacht Life Foundation, newspapers fill them in with ‘salacious stories’.

Mark is referring to the superyacht industry which hasn’t had an easy time growing up while represented by Bond villains and super-rich owners whose wealth makes them a natural target. De Jong believes the hereditary animosity about the superyacht industry has come from its tendency to be highly secretive. When you consider the products, the owners and the money involved, you can understand why. But, de Jong says, the secrecy has been taken to the extreme and that’s why the foundation has been set up, to counter the negativity and to shine a spotlight on the positives that the industry abounds with – like craftsmanship.

Continue reading “Superyacht Life Foundation takes on the negative press surrounding the upscale yachting sector”

ABS has published a ballast water management for yachts guide now that they are now required to comply with the IMO International Convention for the Control and management of Ships’ Ballast Water and Sediments (BWM Convention) which requires an approved ballast water management system.

As all vessels, yachts are included within the definitions of the BWM Convention according to Article 1.12, whereby a “Ship” means a vessel of any type whatsoever operating in the aquatic environment.

Specifically, the ballast water management for yachts guide highlights that new vessels (keel laying date after September 8, 2017) are r Continue reading “ABS issues ballast water management for yachts guide”

Refit, repair and maintenance shipyard MB92 Barcelona has announced the reorganisation of its Operations department in order to increase efficiency and cater for the important workload since the launch of the new 4,800T shiplift last year. It follows the departure of Miquel À. Lliteras, Shipyard Manager, who after 21 years, has decided to start a new professional adventure.

The new Operations structure comprises HSE, Project Management, Project Administration and Operations Management, and will be headed by Jordi Ariet who has been with the company for more than 15 years. Jordi, who trained as a marine engineer, began his career at MB92 Barcelona as a Project Manager and progressed through the company before becoming Project Director in 2011 and Director of Continue reading “MB92 Barcelona has reorganised its operations department in drive to increase efficiency”

Dramatic footage shot by the Italian coast guard showed a burning yacht sinking below the surface of the Mediterranean off the coast of Sardinia. Coast guard officials confirmed they had rescued 17 people from the vessel, which left a plume of smoke behind as it disappeared into the water. Two coast guard boats and a helicopter were involved in the operation.

According to Italian news agency ANSA, the 50-metre burning yacht, the Lady MM, was heading from Capri to Sardinia when a fire broke out on board. The seventeen people, which included eight tourists from Kazakhstan and nine crew members, had already abandoned the ship and were in a smaller boat when the coast guard arrived.

Continue reading “Italian Coast Guard rescues seventeen from burning yacht”

In an important decision handed down, the Commercial Court accepted that it had applicable jurisdiction to hear claims arising out of the loss of a superyacht which had fallen from the deck of a transporting vessel in heavy weather conditions.

The Italian owner of the yacht had brought proceedings in Italy, despite having signed a contract containing an exclusive applicable jurisdiction clause in favour of the English courts, asserting that as a consumer he was entitled to sue in the courts of his own domicile. Continue reading “Superyacht dispute offers guidance on applicable jurisdiction”

The world’s largest aluminium sailing yacht, the truly breathtaking three-masted Royal Huisman schooner SEA EAGLE II, is the largest superyacht to emerge from the company’s facility in Vollenhove.

Earlier this year, SEA EAGLE II, designed by Dykstra Naval Architects and Mark Whiteley, was transferred from the shipyard’s headquarters in Vollenhove and launched in Amsterdam. Her three carbon Rondal masts and booms were installed and tuned at Royal Huisman’s Amsterdam facility. The 81m or 266ft contemporary schooner was perfectly on schedule for her delivery date, but Covid-19 restrictions in the Netherlands prevented the finishing touch from being completed.

Continue reading “The world’s largest aluminium sailing yacht SEA EAGLE II handed to owners”