Johnson

According to the international press, the 145m Solaris has become the eighth vessel in Roman Abramovich’s fleet. She is being built at Lloyd Werft in Bremerhaven, Germany, where they’re preparing her for launch. According to some sources she’ll cost £430 million to build.Solaris has eight decks, as well as a helicopter pad, and she’ll have 48 cabins, accommodating up to thirty-six passengers and a crew of sixty. Lloyd Werft is located on a site covering more than 260,000 square metres in Bremerhaven’s Überseehafen on the German North Sea coast. Three large dry and floating docks, as well as high-performance workshops and logistics sectors, make it possible to build and convert ships more than 300m in length and with a draw up to 11m.Credits: Tom van Oossanen Instagram

We were shocked last week by the news about the fire on board the 75m sailing yacht Enigma (formerly known as Phocea). The yacht caught a fire near Langkawi, Malaysia. Seven crew members were rescued from the yacht, but the damage incurred by the fire led to the yacht sinking nearly twenty-four hours later. There is an interesting story behind the yacht. Enigma was built at Toulon, France, by DCAN in 1976 for Alain Colas, who was a French sailor. Her name was Club Méditerranée. He disappeared in 1978 in the Atlantic ocean, never to be seen again. In 1985 she was bought from Alain Colas’s wife by Bernard Tapie and renamed Phocea. Her second owner, French businessman Bernard Tapie, who is also an occasional actor, TV host and politician. He owned Adidas from 1990 to 1993; his cycling team La Vie Claire won the Tour de France twice – in 1985 and 1986 – and his football club Olympique de Marseille won the French championship four times in a row, as well as the Champions League in 1993. The documentary Who is Bernard Tapie? was filmed in 2001.From 1986 to 1999, Phocea used it as a cruising yacht. She had a major refit in 2000 in Germany. As a schooner with four masts, she was originally built for speed, and she crossed the Atlantic in 8 days and achieved speeds of 30 knots under sail. Then she was sold to Mouna Ayoub and sold again to her current owners in 2010. The Phocea was the world's largest sailing yacht before the 2004 launching of Athena, by Royal Huisman. She was loved by royalty, and, in August 2005, she crashed into the rocks off Sardinia with Prince and Princess Michael of Kent on board. Three people were seriously injured in this accident. Credits: Asian Yacht Crew/Facebook; LeHuffPost/YouTube

The first Long Island 78 Power catamaran by JFA Yachts has been delivered to her owner. The 23.7m 4Ever got an aluminium hull and composite superstructure. The interior and exterior design were made by Franck Darnet Design and her power comes from a pair of 500hp engines for a top speed of 18 knots and comfortable cruising at 12 knots. At a speed of eight knots, she has a cruising range of 3,200 nautical miles.The outdoor spaces are also innovative with, in front of the nacelle, a lounge area and a sea water bath on the deck. Of course, in the back the interior salon extends to a large exterior cockpit. On the flybridge, a salon and dining area with a small kitchenette will be installed behind the wheelhouse.4Ever will be leaving her home port of Concarneau, France, on her big voyage – fist in Mediterranean and then the Pacific.JFA Yachts was founded in March 1993 at Concarneau in Brittany, a region in France rich in maritime heritage. Kermor, a 75’ light displacement sailing yacht, was the first yacht produced by the shipyard. Kermor means ‘house on the sea’ in Bretton. Now it’s a boutique shipyard; where the expertise, the savoir-faire, and family environment make the construction project into a unique experience. Today, nearly 60 yachts, sailing and motor, monohull and multihull, made out of both aluminium and composite, explore the planet. Credits: JFA Yachts

Morgana, the new 100-foot custom sloop by Southern Wind, has arrived in La Spezia, Italy, after a maiden voyage of more than 7,000 nautical miles from the southern tip of Africa to the Mediterranean. With general design, exterior and interior design by Nauta Design and naval architecture by Reichel/Pugh, the R/P-NAUTA 100 is a hi-tech lifting keel custom sailing yacht that draws on lightweight carbon fibre/Corecell, Nomex and prepreg construction for optimal racing performance and cruising comfort.“Morgana completed her delivery voyage from the Southern Wind shipyard in South Africa with flying colours,” says Mario Pedol, president of Nauta Design, who went aboard the boat in La Spezia together with her owner. “The demanding owner is a friend of mine and this is the culmination of an idea that started in 2017 when he approached us to design his new dream yacht.” Morgana’s exterior profile, from the spacious flush deck to the sleek and sporty lines of the coachroof, is typical of the uncluttered style that Nauta Design brings to its projects. Thanks also to the tender garage, ample foredeck locker, hidden mooring arrangement and an underwater anchor system, the 100 footer’s clean and essential looks are the result of years of experience in designing ocean-going sailing yachts. Nauta Design is also responsible for the fresh and contemporary, yet understated, interior styling. Morgana has three en-suite guest cabins, including a large owner’s suite forward and a dedicated TV area in the forward part of the salon. The aft crew area includes a captain’s cabin with a double bed portside and a crew cabin with two bunks to starboard. The R/P-NAUTA 100 has a powerful hull form when heeled and a narrow upright waterplane for stability while reaching and sailing upwind, as well as good performance in light airs. The design and construction benefited from efficient cooperation between the designers and the shipyard, who were focused on finding the best balance between innovative solutions and well-proven technologies.Credits: Rob Kamhoot

Blue II (Project Lombok) is a 56m ice-class explorer yacht. Her 1960s inspired exterior was designed by Andre Hoek and her interior by Hoek Design & Vickers Studio. Blue II style might be described as classical with a modern twist. The inside volume is 785 GT. She can accommodate 12 guest in six spacious cabins and has a spa with a sauna, a steam room, a Turkish bath and massage room, and a gym. She can travel in the Northwest Passage and polar regions. Blue II has a hybrid diesel-electric propulsion system and satellite communications dome, which is integrated into the composite funnel. She can reach a top speed of 13 knots.Turquoise was established in 1997 by two leaders of the Turkish boat building industry: Proteksan Yachts Inc. and Turquoise Yacht Construction. After launching the 50m M/Y Turquoise (now called Double Trouble), 20 other megayachts ranging from 40m to 77m in length have since been delivered to an international roster of clients from the United States, United Kingdom, Europe and Russia. Credits: Hoek Design Naval Architects