Superyacht News January 2021

The yachting industry is starting off 2021 strong with several notable sales, price reductions, new builds and additions to the charter market. Northrop & Johnson has its finger on the pulse of the industry and has rounded up highlights from the last 30 days.

YACHT SALES

Kicking off 2021 in spectacular style, there have been no less than 37 superyachts sold in the last 30 days alone. Seventeen of these were under 98 feet (30m) in length, 13 were between 98 feet (30m) and 147 feet (45m), five from 147 feet (45m) to 230 feet (70m) and two were over 230 feet (70m). Several notable sales include the 196-foot (60m) Lürssen superyacht HUNTRESS, the 196-foot (60m) Benetti ANDREAS L and the 220-foot (67m) Damen support vessel GARCON.

As 37 yachts leave the marketplace, 56 new listings arrive. Of these new listings, 31 are under 98 feet (30m), 21 are between 98 feet (30m) and 147 feet (45m), and four are between 147 feet (45m) and 196 feet (60m).

Included in the top three noteworthy new listings is the 108-foot (33m) Pershing NAAV. It is very rare to find this Pershing popular model so lightly used and competitively priced. Other notable new listings include EXODUS, a nearly new example of a 131-foot (40m) tri-deck Sunseeker at a very sensible asking price, and AVANTI, a high volume 196-foot (60m) Lürssen that is a desirable brand with strong residual values.

Several yachts on the sale market have recently received major price reductions in an effort to stimulate interest. We’ve rounded up the three most notable reductions in the last 30 days. The 236-foot (72m) explorer yacht BLUE DE NÎMES received an €8,000,000 price reduction bringing her new asking price to €47,000,000. There was also a €6,000,000 price reduction on the 180-foot (54m) Baltic Yacht PINK GIN, which is now asking €39,000,000. The 236-foot (72m) Tankoa superyacht SOLO received a €5,000,000 price reduction and is now asking €62,900,000. Though, of particular interest is the $1,000,000 price reduction of the 148-foot (45m) Sunrise ATOM, which is now asking $12,900,000. It is difficult to find a well-built yacht of this size and age for that price.

CHARTER YACHTS

While the sales market is clearly very vibrant and active, the charter market is still finding it relatively tough after being hit very hard by Covid travel restrictions in 2020. The New Year is certainly looking more positive and is already gearing up to be a year of steady recovery with several exciting new yachts now available and summer bookings already looking promising.

Damen’s 252-foot (77m) explorer yacht LA DATCHA that made such an impact on the industry when she was launched in 2020, is now in the Indian Ocean. She is embarking on a two-year world cruise with charter windows available. Many yacht owners are meeting the market’s demand to charter yachts in a variety of destinations. In fact, the 243-foot (74m) yacht NAIA has recently become available in the beautiful location of Costa Rica, offering charter opportunities in Central America.

New to the worldwide charter fleet is the brand new 243-foot (47m) Sanlorenzo superyacht DRIFTER WORLD, which will be based in Athens and chartering in Greek waters. The 157-foot (48m) Christensen TOP FIVE recently joined the Northrop & Johnson charter fleet and will be cruising The Bahamas and New England. The recently refitted and sharp looking 128 -foot (39m) yacht OCULUS also recently joined the worldwide charter fleet and will be chartering in the Caribbean.

NEW PROJECTS

Yacht Builders have made a very encouraging start to the year, with Italian builder Overmarine announcing two sales of new hulls; a 109-foot (33m) Gransport and a 137-foot (42m) Oceano called PROJECT COMO. Dutch builder Amels announced two new sales, hull numbers six and seven of their popular 242 model. The builder has been particularly busy this January as it also delivered a new Amels 242 named SYNTHESIS to her owner earlier in the month.

Meanwhile, Italian builder Rossinavi is close to delivering the 230-foot (70m) explorer yacht POLARIS, which is due to be launched this month. This is one of the largest yachts the builder has ever built, matching in length HIGH POWER III built in 2011 and launched under the name NUMPTIA. Another shipyard that’s in the process of delivering their largest ever yacht is the increasingly popular UAE-based builder Gulf Craft. It currently is sea trialing a 180-foot (55m) yacht, which is not only the builder’s largest yacht to date but also the largest composite production yacht in the world.

While yacht builders are busy constructing and delivering exciting new projects, yacht designers have been equally busy announcing the release of new concepts. The Nauta Designs 315-foot (96m) PROJECT BLUE is of notable interest. Nauta Designs is, of course, also responsible for the design of the world’s longest yacht, AZZAM, so they are well qualified to handle the design of a 315-foot (96m) project. From the world’s largest yacht we pass to the world’s largest sportfish, as renowned Dutch design firm Vripack confirms the commissioning of a 137-foot (52m) sportfish that will be built by Royal Huisman. The yacht will be built from aluminum, promises high performance, and for the time being, is known as PROJECT 406.

315′ (96m) Nauta Designs PROJECT BLUE

N&J NEWS

Looking back at 2020 for Northrop & Johnson, it was an exciting year in more ways than one. In July, the company was acquired by industry giant MarineMax. This acquisition created by far the world’s largest superyacht services organization. Brett McGill, Chief Executive Officer and President of MarineMax said, “On a global scale, the unified team creates an unprecedented superyacht powerhouse.”

Also, in 2020, the yacht brokers at Northrop & Johnson sold a colossal 103 yachts, listed 70 new yachts for sale and added 14 new members to the team. Of particular note was the appointment of the industry veteran Patrick Coote as Head of Northrop & Johnson Europe and Chief Marketing Officer, the promotion of Cromwell Littlejohn as the Chief Commercial Officer, and in a further show of confidence, Daniel Ziriakus became President and Chief Operating Officer of the company.

The team has already made a significant impact on the company and, in an effort to ensure that clients’ interests are always at the forefront of company strategy in these troublesome times, a comprehensive trip cancellation insurance has been developed and offered to charter clients through Private Insurance Services, headed up by John Gaffney. The policy covers a wide range of eventualities that allow Northrop & Johnson clients to book their charter with greater peace of mind.

If you enjoy being informed on what’s happening in our industry, don’t forget that our Northrop & Johnson brokers are always happy to hear from you.