Few events have ever affected yachting as much as the sinking of the 60 meter Yogi. The largest yacht to ever sink, its wreck strongly hit the Turkish shipbuilding sector and made owners take a hard look at their insurances and dangers, even though no one was hurt. Despite the accident, Yogi was no less of an exceptional yacht.
Yogi was the largest yacht ever built by up and coming Turkish shipyard, Proteksan Turquoise at the time of her delivery in 2011. Reminiscent of an explorer style yacht through her design by Jean Guy Verges, Yogi featured oversized portholes in her hull that brought in tons of flight into the yacht's cabins.
Built for Stephane Courbit, a French media and TV millionaire valued at €450 million, Yogi was built to be operated as a charter yacht part of its hotel collection. Maximizing space, the yacht had many amenities for her size including a swimming pool, beach club, wellness center and media room.
Yet, on February 17th 2012, just as the yacht was days out of leaving the yard where it was undergoing warrantied maintenance work, it sank in the Aegean sea. The weather was particularly difficult during that day and yet it seems to be an engine failure that, tied to a number of circumstantial events, led to the 60-meter yacht sinking to the bottom of the Mediterranean.
The report did, however, clear Proteksan in the quality of its build, focusing on what was a mixture of human oversight and extreme conditions. A Turkish investigations arrived at similar conclusions. Manned by a skeleton crew of 8 during this voyage, it took an hour to evacuate by helicopter the yacht's crew as seas at their peek featured waves of up to 7 meters.
The largest yacht to have ever cruised with the French flag, Yogi was part of Courbit's Lov Collection, a holding company that includes the Les Airelles palace in Courchevel as well as the Pan Dei hotel in St Tropez. Built with charter in mind to its existing and new clientele, the yacht commanded prices of up to €378,000 per week and featured 800 square meter of interior space in a particularly luxurious interior.
A key element in Yogi's design was her large pool with overflow that sat aft of the yacht's main deck, directly on top of its beach club. In the middle of the pool was a glass porthole that flooded the area underneath with light. All around the pool were lounging pads for Yogi's guest to take in the sun when the yacht was anchored off in a bay.
To complement the swimming pool aft of the main deck, a Jacuzzi was also placed aft of the sundeck, for guests that wanted to enjoy the sun in a hot tub. Also surrounded by sunpads, these feature a common beige design throughout the yacht with colored pillows. Same can be said for the customizable lounging area aft of the upper deck.
On the inside, Yogi was reminiscent of Courbit's luxurious hotels. Featuring a beige and creme tone throughout the yacht, the 60-meter was fitted with floor to ceiling windows that visually increased the size of its 800 square meters of interior space. Its main salon was structured into a lounging area and a TV sector with a wide screen built into the wall.
Stretching across the full beam of the yacht, Yogi's master bedroom was no less spectacular with both lots of light and space. A king sized bed throned in the middle of the suite with access through a central corridor to a dressing room and his and hers bathrooms.
The yacht's guest accommodation didn't also pale in comparison with the owner's stateroom. Finished in the same style, the double and twin guest cabins could be connected or separated through double sliding doors. In total, Yogi could accommodate a total of 12 guests across 6 cabins.
Tall windows could be found throughout the yacht and were a real differentiating factor from competition on the market for Yogi. 'The idea was to have a yacht that could be chartered and run just like a resort.' detailed its designer, Jean Guy Verges in a later interview. 'She has been designed to the specific request of her owner. I think this jewel offered more than you would expect of a yacht her size.'
Another interesting amenity of Yogi was her observational lounge up on the sun deck. Finished throughout in glass, the area boasted a 180 degree view into the yacht's surroundings through a climate controlled environment. Equipped with custom furniture from the likes of Hermes, this media lounge separated the sun deck into a Jacuzzi and a raised dinning area.
Down on the upper deck, which also featured a covered dinning room, guests would find an extensive lounging pad with tiles that could be raised or flattened to create lounging chairs or sun beds. Connected to iPods and iPhones, which in 2011 was still rare, Yogi featured an advanced system for her time with TVs that slid out even in front of lounging pads.
Viewed by many as a step forward for the Turkish yacht building sector and as an endorsement of their quality, when Yogi sank, the whole country took a hit. By 2011, yacht owners and charters had started outgrowing the stigma of building in Turkey and the market was picking up for local builders. In fact Yogi was the largest yacht ever built by Proteksan.
Yogi's delivery was followed weeks after by their newest flagship, a 70.5-meter reminiscent of a Dutch-build quality, Talisman C. Shortly after it followed the 72-meter Vicky and it looked like Turkey would emerge as a yacht building destination. This all ended when Yogi sank in February 2012 and owners' stigma towards Turkey developed once again.
Although some Turkish shipyards continued to prosper, many faded down their ambitions in a global recession. This ultimately culminated with the acquisition of Proteksan Turquoise by Dutch-based Oceanco. Backed by billionaire investor Mohammed Al Barwani, the Dutch superyacht builder since set out on a mission to make the yard competitive and got an order for a 77-meter yacht now under build.
Having initially started his career in television in the 1990s, Stephane Courbit where he built a reputation, eventually starting his own production company behind hits such as Miss France. Eventually acquired by Dutch holding Endemol, Courbit exited from the company in 2001.
His LOV Group currently includes companies in the audiovisual space with several production companies behind some of France's most popular game shows. Other investments include several betting sites, which he started in acquiring in 2007. One of his fastest growing divisions has now becomes the Airelles collection of hotels.
After investing nearly $200 million into the purchase and renovation of the five star Courchevel palace, Les Airelles, Courbit acquired the Pan Dei Palace in St Tropez. His hotel portfolio then grew with the Bastide de Gordes in 2014. Two more Airelles hotels are set to open in the next two years, one in Versailles and one in Val d'Isiere.
Iman is a 59.3 m luxury motor yacht, built in Italy by Benetti and delivered in 2008. She has been just recently sold, with Nicholas Hidiroglou from Parsifal Yachting representing the buyer and Konstantin Kolpakov from Arcon Yachts representing the seller in the deal.With a beam of 10.4 m and a draft of 3.15 m, she has a steel hull and aluminium superstructure. This adds up to a gross tonnage of 996 tons. The vessel was built to comply to MCA and Lloyds Register standards.She is powered by MTU engines giving her a maximum speed of 16 knots and a cruising speed of 15 knots.Iman offers accommodation for 12 guests across 6 cabins, including a master suite, 1 VIP stateroom, 4 double cabins and 2 pullman beds. The superyacht features interior design, decorated with warm honey-coloured woods, such as rosewood, walnut, mahogany, teak, zebrawood, by the Italian Studio Massari and the exterior design by Stefano Natucci. The master suite looks more like a private apartment and the split-level suite includes a bedroom, witch features two separate bathrooms.The impressive main deck is styled with art deco features and offers for guests a huge entertaining and dining saloon.Iman, formerly I Dynasty, was sold in August 2017 for €29.5 million and came back onto the market in September 2018 with an asking price €26 million. In a while her asking price was reduced down to €23.5 million.
August 3, 2020
Never Enough is a 47.85-metre luxury motor yacht. She was built by Trinity Yachts and delivered in 2006 as a Trinity 157 model. Her last refit was in 2018.With a beam of 8.534 m and a draft of 2.13 m, she has an aluminium hull and superstructure.Never Enough is powered by Caterpillar engines of 2249 hp each giving her a maximum speed of 20 knots and a cruising speed of 12 knots. The motor yacht can accommodate 10 guests in 5 classic style cabins with an interior design by Evan K. Marshall, including a full beam master stateroom on deck and four guest staterooms on the lower deck. Her modern exterior is created by the Trinity Yachts who are also responsible for the entire engineering package.Never Enough features rich and highly polished mahogany and cherry wood joinery with high quality marble and granite.There are many comfortable areas for entertaining, such as outdoor Jacuzzi, gas BBQ grill, lounge and dining areas. She features a full-beam skylounge with large windows and the sundeck, which has a spacious bar with seating and a hot tub.There is a full inventory of water toys including diving equipment, a Novurania tender, a pair of waverunners and gym gear.
August 3, 2020
Slipstream is Nauta Design’s latest 78.4-metre superyacht concept. The project embraces many of the design ideas from the Italian studio’s earlier 70- metre Moonflower concept, which advanced in its design and engineering process.Mario Pedol, co-founder of Nauta Design in Milan, commented:The exterior styling of Slipstream reflects Nauta’s trademark preference for clean, uncluttered design devoid of fussy or superfluous detailing.The boat will have “the island”, patented studio’s beach club idea, which also appears on Moonflower. Project Moonflower is a spectacular modern vessel, which will be built in Italy and is scheduled for delivery in 2021/2022.Pedol explained:The patent was to complete the process. The idea was to create a kind of 270-degree walkway that embraces three sides of the transom.To achieve it we inserted a connecting element between the side terraces that open out over the sea at beach club level and also the fold-down side platforms which are a continuation of the usual large aft terrace. This creates a single level space that means guests can simply walk from one side of the boat to the other in complete freedom, either from the interior of the beach club or from the stern. We patented this concept of unhindered movement and its solution. Not to prevent others from using it but to formalise our idea as intellectual property.While guests are using the beach club and the island, they’ll appreciate the sea-water pool, which has been integrated into the stern platform, being able to close flush with the deck to provide her 12 guests with outdoor space. The island is one of the unique features of the interiors which, just like the exterior design, have a very clear Nauta stamp to them. Clean lines, spare and light apertures on all decks give her a modern look. This look is also reflected in the interior, which even though it is not finished yet, is dominated by constant ebb and flow between inside and outside areas. Each level of Slipstream features generous open deck space.The master suite with a king-size bed features a spectacular private outdoor area with a Jacuzzi. Pedol said:The connection between interior and exterior continues in the communal areas. For instance, the saloon on the main deck, which is over 100 square metres, opens directly into the al fresco lounge of almost the same size.The studio decided this concept being a custom megayacht, so future buyers are free to select decoration and furnishing as well as watertoys. However, the superyacht comes equipped with a 10 meter Limousine tender, a 9 meter RIB, two rescue tenders, two Seascape sailing boats, jetskis, seabobs, kayaks and kite and windsurfing gear.Four 1,081 kW generators and two 500 kW generators will provide the power. In addition, she should be capable of range of 5,000 nautical miles at an economic speed of 12 knots.
July 31, 2020
The flagship yacht of the Admiral fleet, 73.2-metre explorer motor yacht Planet Nine, has been recently spotted at Shipwreck Cove in Zykanthos. Built two years ago in Italy, she recently finished her latest maintenance refit at Monaco Marine's La Ciotat facility.Tim Heywood, a Hampshire based designer worked together with German studio Fritz Interior on the inside.The yacht was built for World cruising and limitless adventuring. With a beam of 12.8 m and a draft of 3.61 m, she has a steel hull and aluminium superstructure. This adds up to a gross tonnage of 2100 tons.She is powered by twin Caterpillar engines of 2575 hp each giving her a maximum speed of 16 knots and a cruising speed of 14 knots. Planet Nine's maximum range is estimated at 6000 nautical miles.A pair of elevators connect all five decks. The vessel was designed to re-create the feeling of a villa on the inside. Her helicopter and tender capabilities make Planet Nine a recommended charter for colder regions, such as Greenland. The spacious aft tender garage is fitted with a pair of 9.75-metre Rupert Marine tenders.
July 31, 2020
Endeavour 2, a 49.9m yacht has been sold through Ocean Independence's Peter Hürzeler who represented the seller and Rytis Babravicius who took the side of the buyer. Built by Rossinavi in 2017, Endeavour 2 is designed for long distances. Her interior was designed by Salvagni Architetti, featuring four guest cabins on the lower deck and one master suite on the main deck. The motor yacht can accommodate 10 guests in 5 cabins. The master suite comes with a private balcony on the starboard side and a private lounge looking out over the terrace. Arrabito Naval Architects worked with the yard, creating interesting features for the vessel such as the tender storage area to the foredeck ahead of the wheelhouse.Above the surrounding bulwark, she features a huge deck, below deck level there is a lift to each tender into the water.With a beam of 8.79 m and a draft of 2 m, she has an aluminium hull and aluminium superstructure. This adds up to a gross tonnage of 499 tons. Endeavour 2 is powered by two diesel-electric engines and the newest Rolls Royce pods propulsion system, leading to top-notch manoeuvrability. At 12 knots she is able to reach distances of up to 5000nm range. She is able to reach a top speed of 17 knots.The asking price for the Rossinavi yacht was €23,700,000.
July 31, 2020