yacht topaz location

TOPAZ current position and history of port calls are received by AIS. Technical specifications, tonnages and management details are derived from VesselFinder database. The data is for informational purposes only and VesselFinder is not responsible for the accuracy and reliability of TOPAZ data.

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Topaz was technically launched mid May 2012 when she emerged from her floating shed at the Lürssen yard and conducted sea trials in August. Very little is known about the motor yacht although she is the third largest yacht to be launched by the German yard and also belongs to a member of the UAE elite, although she flies a Cayman flag.

About A+ , brought to you by BOATPro

A+ is a 147.25 m Motor Yacht, built in Germany by Lurssen and delivered in 2012.

Her top speed is 22.9 kn and her cruising speed is 19.5 kn and her power comes from four MTU diesel engines. She can accommodate up to 62 guests in 26 staterooms, with 79 crew members. She has a gross tonnage of 12532.0 GT and a 21.5 m beam.

She was designed by Tim Heywood , who has designed 60 other superyachts in the BOAT Pro database.

The naval architecture was developed by Lurssen , who has architected 71 other superyachts in the BOAT Pro database, and the interior of the yacht was designed by Terence Disdale , who has 77 other superyacht interiors designed in the BOAT Pro database - she is built with a Teak deck, a Steel hull, and Aluminium superstructure.

A+ is the 9th longest yacht in the world. She is one of 70 motor yachts longer than 100m, and, compared to similarly sized motor yachts, her cruising speed is 3.59 kn above the average, her top speed 3.2 kn above the average, and her volume 5394.92 GT above the average.

A+ is currently sailing under the Cayman Islands flag, the 2nd most popular flag state for superyachts with a total of 1412 yachts registered. She is known to be an active superyacht and has most recently been spotted cruising near Italy. For more information regarding A+'s movements, find out more about BOATPro AIS .

Specifications

• Previous Names: TOPAZ
• Yacht Type: Motor Yacht
• Builder: Lurssen
• Naval Architect: Lurssen
• Exterior Designer: Tim Heywood
• Interior Designer: Terence Disdale
• Refits: 2017,2018,2019,2022,2022

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A+ yacht NOT for charter*

147.25m  /  483'1 | lurssen | 2012.

Owner & Guests

• Previous Yacht

Special Features:

• Wheelchair friendly yacht
• Impressive 5,000nm range
• Well-appointed wellness zone, including spa and beach club
• Inviting pool
• Twenty-six cabins

The 147.25m/483'1" motor yacht 'A+' (ex. Topaz) was built by Lurssen in Germany at their Bremen shipyard. Her interior is styled by English designer design house Terence Disdale and she was delivered to her owner in August 2012. This luxury vessel's exterior design is the work of Tim Heywood Design.

Guest Accommodation

A+ has been designed to comfortably accommodate up to 62 guests in 26 suites. She is also capable of carrying up to 79 crew onboard to ensure a relaxed luxury yacht experience.

Onboard Comfort & Entertainment

Her features include a dancefloor, wheelchair accessibility, spa, beauty salon, satellite communications, underwater lights, beach club, gym, deck jacuzzi, WiFi and air conditioning.

Range & Performance

A+ is built with a steel hull and aluminium superstructure, with teak decks. Powered by twin diesel VEM Sachsenwerk (DKMEF 1241 - 16V) 8,046hp engines running at 254rpm, she comfortably cruises at 19 knots, reaches a maximum speed of 22 knots with a range of up to 5,000 nautical miles from her 900,000 litre fuel tanks at 17 knots. A+ features at-anchor stabilizers providing exceptional comfort levels. Her water tanks store around 100,000 Litres of fresh water. She was built to Lloyds Register ✠ 100 A1, Passenger vessel + LMC, UMS, SCM, DP (AM) ✠ 100A1 SSC Yacht(P) Mono G6 ES, + LMC, UMS, SCM, DP (AM) classification society rules.

*Charter A+ Motor Yacht

Motor yacht A+ is currently not believed to be available for private Charter. To view similar yachts for charter , or contact your Yacht Charter Broker for information about renting a luxury charter yacht.

A+ Yacht Owner, Captain or marketing company

'Yacht Charter Fleet' is a free information service, if your yacht is available for charter please contact us with details and photos and we will update our records.

NOTE to U.S. Customs & Border Protection

Specification

M/Y A+

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Top 100 Lurssen Yacht Topaz Renamed A+

By Anna Solomon

Currently the world’s seventh largest superyacht at a staggering 147.25m, and the 4th largest at her time of building, 2012 Lurssen launch Topaz has changed its name to A+ , prompting speculation that she has a new owner.

The German-built colossus ranks highly in the Top 100 listings, and boasts a star-studded team behind her build befitting of a yacht her size. She features a magnificent exterior from Terence Disdale and interiors crafted by the celebrated Tim Heywood Design. Perhaps unsurprisingly, the formidable yacht spent four years in construction at the Lurssen shipyard.

Like most Top 100 vessels owned by royalty, not much is known about the newly christened A+ other than her basic specifications. We know that she accommodates an incredible 62 guests and up to 79 crew members, and that she cruises at 19.5 with a maximum speed of 22 knots - an impressive rate for a boat of her size.

We also know that this eight-deck megayacht leads the world records in terms of volume, with a monumental gross tonnage of 12,532 GT. She was most recently spotted in Abu Dhabi, after a stay in the Lurssen  shipyard at the end of last year for a refit or maintenance work.

Despite speculation that this name change hints that the 147.25m has changed hands from Emirati royalty, deputy prime minister of the UAE and Manchester City Football Club owner Sheikh Mansour bin Zayed al Nahnan, there is no other indication of this. Topaz/A+ has never been listed for sale, and may have only been renamed at this moment in time.

A+ is in good company within the Lurssen ranks. The shipyard have made a name for themself in the construction of gigayachts, with 136m Flying Fox having recently entered the charter market , and 142m Redwood having been spotted at the yard prior to her delivery date. Watch this space for updates!

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147m TOPAZ Yacht photographed on the French Riviera

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Written by Eva Belanyiova

The magnificent 147-metre luxury yacht Topaz was captured by another one of our readers on the 21st August. Ian Bugby has sent us a a number of night shot showing Topaz superyacht and her impressive lighting as well as cruising during the day time. She was photographed in Nice , French Riviera , in the Mediterranean .

147m Mega Yacht Topaz in Nice - Photo Ian Bugby

Luxury superyacht topaz in Nice - Photo credit Ian Bugby

Topaz was designed by renowned Tim Heywood and built at Lurssen in Germany . She is at number four amongst the largest superyachts in the world and the second largest mega yacht constructed by Lurssen, following the 155-metre Al Said yacht , to date. This is to change soon however, as Lurssen is currently building their largest vessel ever, the 180m mega yacht AZZAM project , which will become the largest luxury yacht in the world once launched, taking over from Eclipse superyacht .

Luxury Yacht TOPAZ - Photo Ian Bugby

Mega Yacht TOPAZ on the French Riviera - Photo Ian Bugby

TOPAZ yacht features a full displacement steel hull coupled with a lighter aluminium superstructure. In addition, she has a helicopter landing platform, tender garages and swimming pools. She can presumably accommodated up to 12 guests in 6 luxurious cabins, although this is not confirmed as yet.

Lurssen mega yacht Topaz in Nice - Photo Ian Bugby

Lurssen superyacht Topaz - Photo by Ian Bugby

Lurssen superyacht Topaz in Nice - Photo Ian Bugby

Enjoying the view of Topaz yacht in Nice - Photo Ian Bugby

Please contact CharterWorld - the luxury yacht charter specialist - for more on superyacht news item "147m TOPAZ Yacht photographed on the French Riviera".

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A Closer Look at the $527 Million Superyacht Topaz

“If I were rich, I would …” is a thought that crosses everyone’s mind because let’s face it; nobody loves being poor. Christians may say that their Bible teaches against the love of money for it is the root of all evil, but how many have you seen turn down a bag of cash to avoid going against their faith? Although there is truth in the warning since most crimes are money-motivated, we all would want to have enough pair shoes and matching clothes or maybe take a vacation to whichever part of the world we have always wanted to go. For some, they have traveled the world and do not just own cars and multiple homes; they own football clubs. We are talking about the likes of Roman Abramovich who owns Chelsea Football Club and Sheikh Mansour bin Zayed al Nahyan, the owner of Manchester City Football Club. As if that is not enough, they go ahead to acquire the most expensive yachts in the world. Most of us would retire if we had such wealth, but usually, when you get to the top, the view is too good to leave, and the only way to ensure staying there is making more money. That said, let’s focus on Sheikh Mansour’s yacht named Topaz and see what we can learn about it as Wikipedia highlights .

Features of Topaz

Topaz boasts of a length of 482 feet with a beam that is 70.5 feet long. When the project of building Topaz started, it was in a 554 feet dry dock, but given the length of the boat, the builders had to take it to a larger dock to complete its sides. It, therefore, ended up in a 720 feet dock allowing its completion and launching in 2012. For such a large boat, you would think that the speed would be compromised but thanks to the twin Pielstick diesel-fuel engines that produce a horsepower of 7,990 hp each, the boat can cruise at 22.9 knots and reach a maximum speed of at least 25.5 knots. Getting lost at sea is impossible since the navigation equipment is topnotch and is powered not just by the diesel generators, but by another emergency diesel generator. You are also guaranteed of comfort even when the boat is anchored in rough waters because of the generators power stabilizers as well as all other amenities on the boat.

Accommodation on the boat is large enough for 62 guests housed in 26 cabins while the crew members can be as many as 79. Keeping fit while on board is enabled by the swimming pools and the fully-equipped gym that comes with the latest in sports technology. When in the mood to relax, you can opt to either unwind in the two Jacuzzis or catch a movie in the movie theater. Those who love water sports have their needs well addressed through the jet-ski, and inflatable boats. Enjoying the open seas is facilitated by the catamaran while a little underwater adventure is possible through the mini-submarine. With the owner being a businessman, he had to have a conference room on the boat so that it is not all pleasure while cruising the seas. Of course also with so much on his plate, Sheikh Mansour is bound to get emergencies and if he is on the boat, then getting to the location where his attention is required is made possible by flying him away on a helicopter since the boat has double helicopter landing pads. Additionally, when the temperatures rise beyond the comfort of the guests, then the air conditioning unit helps to keep them comfortable.

Who is responsible for Topaz’s interior design?

A yacht is supposed to be like a home in the seas, and therefore you can only entrust an expert who can meet every specification that suits your needs. Topaz’s interior design was, like most renowned yachts, done by Terence Disdale, and he admits that designing and building a yacht is a challenging process that can take four years. Terence is responsible for designing Roman’s Eclipse, and other yachts that are in his portfolio include Montkaj, Ecstacea and Al Salamah. His expertise does not need any advertisements; usually, his clients are those who have been guests in a boat he designed or have chartered one of them and were impressed. For a person who has won more than 30 international design awards, it is no wonder that multibillionaires entrust their money to him.

The man behind Topaz’s exterior design

Human beings are advised to be as beautiful on the inside as they attempt to be on the outside, and Topaz is the ideal definition of both interior and exterior beauty. Tim Heywood is a man who has been in the design industry for over 40 years and who draws his inspiration from everything around him; it could be transportation, nature, architecture, or engineering. He also does not limit his design to specific times; whether it is ancient Egyptian or contemporary, Tim is ready to incorporate whatever he finds suitable. So excellent is his work that his creations have achieved many awards. For instance, when he designed the Al Mirqab , it ended up being termed as the “Motor Yacht of the Year” during the 2009 world Superyacht awards. Also, another yacht that defined his career has to be Pelorus, which was voted among the most beautiful yachts ever to grace the seas.

More about the owner of Topaz

Obviously for anyone to afford a superyacht, money must not be an issue, and for Sheikh Mansour it is not given that he is among the lucky few to be born into a family with a net worth of more than $1 trillion. However, he still has fortunes of his own and does not depend on the wealth of his family. Sheikh Mansour’s Manchester City is valued at least $1.92 billion, and he owns a 9.1% stake in Daimler AG, which makes him the biggest shareholder. By owning Topaz, Sheikh Mansour also made history since the yacht is now the seventh largest superyacht worldwide. Although it set him back $527 million, he still does not mind spending $6 million on fuel alone.

Dana has extensive professional writing experience including technical and report writing, informational articles, persuasive articles, contrast and comparison, grant applications, and advertisement. She also enjoys creative writing, content writing on nearly any topic (particularly business and lifestyle), because as a lifelong learner, she loves to do research and possess a high skill level in this area. Her academic degrees include AA social Sci/BA English/MEd Adult Ed & Community & Human Resource Development and ABD in PhD studies in Indust & Org Psychology.

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TOPAZ Yacht, IMO 9670028

Where is the current position of topaz presently vessel topaz is a yacht ship sailing under the flag of cayman islands . her imo number is 9670028 and mmsi number is 319084900. main ship particulars are length of 42 m and beam of 7 m. maps show the following voyage data - present location, next port, estimated (eta) and predicted time of arrival (pta), speed, course, draught, photos, videos, local time, utc time..

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TOPAZ current position is received by AIS. Ship info reports, fleet analysis, company analyses, address analyses, technical specifications, tonnages, management details, addresses, classification society data and all other relevant statistics are derived from Marine Vessel Traffic database. The data is for informational purposes only and Marine Vessel Traffic is not responsible for the accuracy, completeness and reliability of data reported above herein.

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Hot on the trail of 56 superyachts owned by Russian oligarchs and subject to seizure

• Published: Mar. 06, 2022, 2:04 p.m.

French authorities have seized the yacht Amore Vero linked to Igor Sechin, a Putin ally who runs Russian oil giant Rosneft, as part of EU sanctions over Russia's invasion of Ukraine. The boat arrived in La Ciotat on Jan. 3 for repairs and was slated to stay until April 1 and was seized to prevent an attempted departure. (AP Photo/Bishr Eltoni) AP

• The Associated Press

The massive superyacht Dilbar stretches one-and-a-half football fields in length, about as long as a World War I dreadnought. It boasts two helipads, berths for more than 130 people and a 25-meter swimming pool long enough to accommodate another whole superyacht.

Dilbar was launched in 2016 at a reported cost of more than $648 million. Five years on, its purported owner, the Kremlin-aligned Russian oligarch Alisher Usmanov, was already dissatisfied and sent the vessel to a German shipyard last fall for a retrofit reportedly costing another couple hundred million dollars.

That’s where she lay in drydock on Thursday when the United States and European Union announced economic sanctions against Usmanov — a metals magnate and early investor in Facebook — over his ties to Russian President Vladimir Putin and in retaliation for the invasion of Ukraine.

“We are joining with our European allies to find and seize your yachts, your luxury apartments, your private jets,” President Joe Biden said during his State of the Union speech Tuesday night, addressing the oligarchs. “We are coming for your ill-begotten gains.”

But actually seizing the behemoth boats could prove challenging. Russian billionaires have had decades to shield their money and assets in the West from governments that might try to tax or seize them.

Several media outlets reported Wednesday that German authorities had impounded Dilbar. But a spokeswoman for Hamburg state’s economy ministry told The Associated Press no such action had yet been taken because it had been unable to establish ownership of the yacht, which is named for Usmanov’s mother.

Dilbar is flagged in the Cayman Islands and registered to a holding company in Malta, two secretive banking havens where the global ultra-rich often park their wealth.

Still, in the industry that caters to the exclusive club of billionaires and centimillionaires that can afford to buy, crew and maintain superyachts, it is often an open secret who owns what.

Working with the U.K.-based yacht valuation firm VesselsValue, the AP compiled a list of 56 superyachts — generally defined as luxury vessels exceeding 79 feet in length — believed to be owned by a few dozen Kremlin-aligned oligarchs, seaborne assets with a combined market value estimated at more than $5.4 billion.

The AP then used two online services — VesselFinder and MarineTraffic — to plot the last known locations of the yachts as relayed by their onboard tracking beacons.

While many are still anchored at or near sun-splashed playgrounds in the Mediterranean and Caribbean, more than a dozen were underway to or had already arrived in remote ports in small nations such as the Maldives and Montenegro, potentially beyond the reach of Western sanctions. Three are moored in Dubai, where many wealthy Russians have vacation homes.

Another three had gone dark, their transponders last pinging just outside the Bosporus in Turkey — gateway to the Black Sea and the southern Russian ports of Sochi and Novorossiysk.

Graceful, a German-built Russian-flagged superyacht believed to belong to Putin, left a repair yard in Hamburg on Feb. 7, two weeks before Russia invaded Ukraine. It is now moored in the Russian Baltic port of Kaliningrad, beyond the reach of Western sanctions imposed against him this past week.

Some Russian oligarchs appear to have not gotten the memo to move their superyachts, despite weeks of public warnings of Putin’s planned invasion.

French authorities seized the superyacht Amore Vero on Thursday in the Mediterranean resort town of La Ciotat. The boat is believed to belong to Igor Sechin, a Putin ally who runs Russian oil giant Rosneft, which has been on the U.S. sanctions list since Russia annexed Crimea in 2014.

The French Finance Ministry said in a statement that customs authorities boarded the 289-foot Amore Vero and discovered its crew was preparing for an urgent departure, even though planned repair work wasn’t finished. The $120 million boat is registered to a company that lists Sechin as its primary shareholder.

On Saturday, Italian financial police in the port of San Remo seized the 132-foot superyacht Lena, which is flagged in the British Virgin Islands. Authorities said the boat belongs to Gennady Timchenko, an oligarch close to Putin and among those sanctioned by the European Union. With an estimated net worth of $16.2 billion, Timchenko is the founder of the Volga Group, which specializes in investments in energy, transport and infrastructure assets.

The 213-foot Lady M was also seized by the Italians while moored in the Riviera port town of Imperia. In a tweet announcing the seizure on Friday, a spokesman for Italian Prime Minister Mario Draghi said the comparatively modest $27 million vessel was the property of sanctioned steel baron Alexei Mordashov, listed as Russia’s wealthiest man with a fortune of about $30 billion.

But Mordashov’s upsized yacht, the 464-foot Nord, was safely at anchor on Friday in the Seychelles, a tropical island chain in the Indian Ocean not under the jurisdiction of U.S. or EU sanctions. Among the world’s biggest superyachts, Nord has a market value of $500 million.

Since Friday, Italy has seized $156 million in luxury yachts and villas in some of its most picturesque destinations, including Sardinia, the Ligurian coast and Lake Como.

Most of the Russians on the annual Forbes list of billionaires have not yet been sanctioned by the United States and its allies, and their superyachts are still cruising the world’s oceans.

The evolution of oligarch yachts goes back to the tumultuous decade after the 1991 fall of the Soviet Union, as state oil and metals industries were sold off at rock-bottom prices, often to politically connected Russian businessmen and bankers who had provided loans to the new Russian state in exchange for the shares.

Russia’s nouveau riche began buying luxury yachts similar in size and expense to those owned by Silicon Valley billionaires, heads of state and royalty. It’s a key marker of status in Moscow and St. Petersburg, and size matters.

“No self-respecting Russian oligarch would be without a superyacht,” said William Browder, a U.S.-born and now London-based financier who worked in Moscow for years before becoming one of the Putin regime’s most vocal foreign critics. “It’s part of the rite of passage to being an oligarch. It’s just a prerequisite.”

As their fortunes ballooned, there was something of an arms race among the oligarchs, with the richest among them accumulating personal fleets of ever more lavish boats.

For example, Russian metals and petroleum magnate Roman Abramovich is believed to have bought or built at least seven of the world’s largest yachts, some of which he has since sold off to other oligarchs.

In 2010, Abramovich launched the Bermuda-flagged Eclipse, which at 533 feet was at the time the world’s longest superyacht. Features include a wood-burning firepit and swimming pool that transforms into a dance floor. Eclipse also boasts its own helicopter hangar and an undersea bay that reportedly holds a mini-sub.

Dennis Cauiser, a superyacht analyst with VesselsFinder, said oligarch boats often include secret security measures worthy of a Bond villain, including underwater escape hatches, bulletproof windows and armored panic rooms.

“Eclipse is equipped with all sorts of special features, including missile launchers and self-defense systems on board,” Cauiser said. “It has a secret submarine evacuation area and things like that.”

Eclipse was soon eclipsed by Azzam, purportedly owned by the emir of Abu Dhabi, which claimed the title of longest yacht when it was launched in 2013. Three years after that, Usmanov launched Dilbar, which replaced another slightly smaller yacht by the same name. The new Dilbar is the world’s largest yacht by volume.

Abramovich, whose fortune is estimated at $12.4 billion, fired back last year by launching Solaris. While not as long as Eclipse or as big as Dilbar, the $600 million Bermuda-flagged boat is possibly even more luxurious. Eight stories tall, Solaris features a sleek palisade of broad teak-covered decks suitable for hosting a horde of well-heeled partygoers.

But no boat is top dog for long. At least 20 superyachts are reported to be under construction in various Northern European shipyards, including a $500 million superyacht being built for the American billionaire Jeff Bezos.

“It’s about ego,” Cauiser said. “They all want to have the best, the longest, the most valuable, the newest, the most luxurious.”

But, he added, the escalating U.S. and EU sanctions on Putin-aligned oligarchs and Russian banks have sent a chill through the industry, with boatbuilders and staff worried they won’t be paid. It can cost upwards of $50 million a year to crew, fuel and maintain a superyacht.

The crash of the ruble and the tanking of Moscow stock market have depleted the fortunes of Russia’s elite, with several people dropping off the list of Forbes billionaires last week. Cauiser said he expects some oligarch superyachts will soon quietly be listed by brokers at fire-sale prices.

The 237-foot Stella Maris, which was seen by an AP journalist docked this past week in Nice, France, was believed to be owned by Rashid Sardarov, a Russian billionaire oil and gas magnate. After publication of an earlier version of this story, AP was contacted Sunday by yacht broker Joan Plana Palao, who said his company represents a U.S. citizen from California who purchased the Stella Maris last month. He declined to disclose the name of the buyer or the person from whom the boat had been purchased.

On Thursday, the U.S. Treasury Department issued a new round of sanctions that included a press release touting Usmanov’s close ties to Putin and photos of Dilbar and the oligarch’s private jet, a custom-built 209-foot Airbus A340-300 passenger liner. Treasury said Usmanov’s aircraft is believed to have cost up to $500 million and is named Bourkhan, after his father.

Usmanov, whose fortune has recently shrunk to about $17 billion, criticized the sanctions.

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“I believe that such a decision is unfair and the reasons employed to justify the sanctions are a set of false and defamatory allegations damaging my honor, dignity and business reputation,” he said in a statement issued through the website of the International Fencing Federation, of which he has served as president since 2008.

Abramovich has not yet been sanctioned. Members of the British Parliament have criticized Prime Minister Boris Johnson for not going after Abramovich’s U.K.-based assets, which include the professional soccer club Chelsea. Under mounting pressure, the oligarch announced this past week he would sell the $2.5 billion team and give the net proceeds “for the benefit of all victims of the war in Ukraine.”

Meanwhile, location transponders showed Solaris moored in Barcelona, Spain, on Saturday. Eclipse set sail from St. Maarten late Thursday and is underway in the Caribbean Sea, destination undisclosed.

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