Mystery mega yacht impounded by Italian authorities

Yahoo – AFP, May 6, 2022 

'Scheherazade' worth an estimated $700 million, is the subject of a probe
into its ownership by Italy's financial police (AFP/Federico SCOPPA)

The Italian authorities on Friday impounded a mega yacht at the centre of a mystery over its ownership as speculation swirled it might even belong to the Russian president. 

"Scheherazade", worth an estimated $700 million, has been the subject of a probe into its ownership by Italy's financial police. 

The Italian probe has helped "establish significant economic and business links between the person who officially possesses the Scheherazade and eminent people in the Russian government," as well as Russian figures sanctioned by the West following Russia's invasion of Ukraine, the Italian ministry of economy and finance said in a statement. 

Following the probe, "the minister of Economy and Finance, Daniele Franco, has signed a decree impounding" the yacht, the statement added. 

It had been berthed for several months for maintenance work at a shipyard at the Marina di Carrara, within the western seaside town of Massa. 

But the yacht was back on the water and seemed about to set sail on Friday, an AFP photographer said before the Italian government statement was issued. 

The 140-metre yacht features two helipads, a swimming pool and a movie theatre,
according to the SuperYachtFan website (AFP/Federico SCOPPA)

But the mystery remains unresolved: who does "Scheherazade" belong to? A Russian oligarch? Vladimir Putin? 

Built by Germany's Luerssen in 2020, the 140-metre yacht features two helipads, a swimming pool and a movie theatre, according to the SuperYachtFan website, which researches yachts and their owners. 

Italian police had said they were doing their best to identify the owner. 

"It's not always easy to attribute ownership" of a yacht, a source close to the Italian probe told AFP in late March. 

The same source said earlier Friday there was "nothing new" in the investigation. 

Researchers at the anti-corruption foundation of Russian dissident Alexei Navalny link the yacht to Putin. 

They cited a crew list in their possession that included several members of Russia's federal protective service, charged with Putin's security. 

But the Italian Sea Group said in a statement the yacht was "not attributable to the property of Russian President Vladimir Putin". 

The shipyard's owner said its assessment was based on "the documentation in its possession and following the findings of the checks carried out by the relevant authorities".

‘A bridge too far’: local anger at dismantling of historic bridge for Bezos boat

DutchNews, February 3, 2022, Senay Boztas

The Hef is an iconic part of Rotterdam’s skyline. Photo: elm3r via Wikimedia Commons

The Rotterdam branch of political party GroenLinks has called an emergency council debate over the fact that an iconic bridge will be temporarily taken apart to allow passage for a mega-yacht for Amazon founder and billionaire Jeff Bezos. 

The news that a section of national monument De Hef would be dismantled (and then put together again) to allow passage for the 127m long, three-masted, aluminium and steel schooner swiftly voyaged the world. 

But the story, broken on Wednesday by local broadcaster Rijnmond, sparked fury amongst history lovers, the Dutch public and some local councillors. 

GroenLinks councillor Stephan Leewis told Rijnmond that he took a dim view of the permission, particularly in the light of Amazon personnel policies and tax andregulation avoidance battles. 

‘Now, we have to break apart our beautiful listed monument?’ he reportedly said, in calling an emergency debate. ‘This really is a bridge too far.’ 

Heritage 

According to Dutch media, next week Rotterdam city council will debate the planning permission given to dismantle the middle section of the 1927 bridge, and reconstruct it – reportedly, at the cost of shipbuilder Oceanco and Bezos. 

Project leader at Rotterdam city council Marcel Walravens previously defended the decision as a pragmatic one. ‘It is about a ship with high masts which cannot pass through the bridge. The only alternative is to take out the middle section,’ he told Rijnmond. 

Walravens hoped that with proper preparation, the middle section of the bridge would only be removed for a day and pointed out the economic and jobs benefit to the region, plus the boost to its international shipbuilding reputation. 

However, some history experts were unimpressed. ‘Jobs are important, but there are limits with what you can and should do with our industrial heritage,’ said Ton Wesselink of the local history society Historisch Genootschap Roterodamum to Rijnmond. 

‘Inequality’ 

On social media, commentators also pointed out the apparent inconsistency in strict, Dutch listed building policy and the privilege apparently afforded to an American billionaire to take apart a bridge which the council had previously promised would no longer be touched. 

On social media, the story inspired humorous comment as well as outrage, particularly in the light of the bridge’s historical destruction during the 1940 Nazi bombardment. A commenter called ‘Marky Mark’ suggested: ‘Can’t we simply dismantle Jeff Bezos and have Rotterdam pass through him?’ 

Jeroen Stet commented: ‘Mega-yachts are a symbol of greed, inequality, and all that is bad about capitalism and the impact it has on the world. If you think you need something like this, it says a lot about you.’ 

Ophef 

Others pointed out that the bridge would be repaired again, and that the shipyard was a huge local employer. Meanwhile, Paul Peeters, podcast host at DutchNews.nl, noted that this was a scandal, or ophef, with a ring about it: ‘De Hef/Jeff-ophef.’ 

At 127 metres long, Bezos’ yacht is set to be the largest sailing yacht in the world when delivered at some point this year, according to Boat International. It is reportedly being moved from one shipyard to another for final fitting. 

A spokesman for Rotterdam council told DutchNews.nl. ‘The municipality of Rotterdam only gives permission to the maritime sector to take a ship to sea. The municipality does not build ships, so we have no further information about this.’

Dutch superyacht yards set new records for market value and share

DutchNews, May 17, 2018

Like superyachts themselves, the Dutch share of the superyacht building industry keeps getting bigger. The Holland Yachting Group says the Dutch saw their market share in the total value of global superyacht deliveries rise by 7.6% to almost 30% in 2017. 

With 23 new orders on the books, there is much more to come in the years ahead, the group said. ‘In essence, the Dutch are selling more superyachts at a higher total value, while also steadily increasing their market share over the past five years’. 

The Dutch yachtbuilding industry defines a superyacht as being over 30 metres in length. 

The 21 deliveries of boats over 30 metres made in 2017 were made by 10 different yards. The superyachts concerned had a total value of €1.19bn, which translates into an average price of €57m per superyacht, an increase of almost 10%. 

It is also the highest total value recorded to date, Holland Yachting Group said. 

Germany, Italy and the Netherlands – in no particular order – are the world’s leading superyacht builders. Germany specialises in larger yachts, Italy in series production, while the Netherlands specialises in custom-built yachts in the 24 to 70 metre sector.

Dutch-built super yachts are being re-sold to tax haven buyers

DutchNews, November 10, 2017

The Galactica Star in Barcelona. Photo: Ralf Roletschek / roletschek.at 

Luxury yachts built in Dutch shipyards are being sold to suspect buyers around the world through tax havens, Trouw and the Financieele Dagblad reported on Friday. 

The dubious yacht transactions were revealed through an investigation being carried out into the Paradise Papers by the two Dutch newspapers . 

The documents reveal at least two instances in which the actual buyer of a Dutch-built yacht has been protected. In one case, the purchase money was obtained, the US justice department maintains, by corruption. 

The Dutch land registry, which covers fishing and inland water pleasure boats as well as housing, said that registration of luxury yachts should be made compulsory to reduce the risk that yachts can be used to cover up money laundering. 

The Paradise Papers contain information culled from legal advisor Appleby and the Estera trust office in Bermuda which came into the hands of German newspaper Süddeutsche Zeitung and then via the International Consortium of Investigative Journalists to the media worldwide. 

Appleby has been involved in the registration or management of hundreds of ships of which one hundred could be classified as super yachts: vessels of up to 150 metres in length and worth hundreds of millions of euros. 

Galactica Star

One of these is the Galactica Star (65 metres and valued at €82m) which was sold in the summer of 2013 by Dutch shipbuilder Heesen. The buyer was Speedwave 65, a company recently set in the British Virgin Islands by an individual who chose to be anonymous. 

Speedwave sold the yacht on almost immediately to another Virgin Island entity Earnshaw Associates Inc, owned by the Nigerian oil magnate Kola Aluko who allegedly obtained his money illegally. Heesen said it was unaware of the resale of the Galactica to Aluko at the time. 

Shipyards also fall under legislation aimed at preventing money laundering and the financing of terrorism, like banks and trust offices They must establish the identity of the actual owner and the aim of any given transaction. 

Superyacht seized in Den Helder port as part of corruption probe

DutchNews, April 14, 2017

A 75 meter long superyacht, worth €113m, has been placed in sequestration in Den Helder port after a judge in Zwolle ruled that the vessel be held while its owner is investigated under charges of corruption in Switzerland and France. 

The ‘Ebony Shine’ is owned by Teodoro Obiang, son of the long-serving president of the tiny West African state of Equitorial Guinea, the NRC said on Friday. 

Teodoro Obiang is being charged on a number of points including money laundering and stealing from the state treasury. The yacht was seized while it was in a Den Helder dockyard for regular maintenance. Obiang claims it is the property of the state of Equitorial Guinea. 

Obiang serves as vice president of the country and has an annual salary of €100,000. Equitorial Guinea has a population of 800,000 and is a former colony of Spain. 

The vessel, built by Feadship in Makkum, has two jaccuzis, a spa, a pool and gym, a helipad, several jetskis and a cinema seating 12. 

Equatorial Africa is one of the richest countries in Africa due to its oil income which amounts to about €3.7bn a year. Only 2% of of this goes for health care and 3% to education. Apart from a small elite, most of the country lives on less than €2 a day.