A US$ 431 million super-yacht named The Serene, owned by exiled Russian vodka tycoon has docked in Wellington. As it went through Marlborough Sounds at weekend, a designed visit to Abel Tasman National Park coast and Port Nelson has evidently been cancelled.
At 134 metre long, the yacht is longer compared to New Zealand’s 2 navy frigates as well as multi-role ship named HMNZS Canterbury. Reports suggest that it feature an internal pool that carries seawater, 2 helicopter platforms as well as a helicopter hangar. It also has a mini submarine aboard as well as a spot called the ‘Nemo room’ – a glass paneled bulkhead for looking at the beneath of the ocean.
The Serene was docked at Queens Wharf yesterday. Charles Smith, the CentrePort marine services, told that non-disclosure documents suggest that he might not show how long the ship would stay in Wellington.
Russian vodka magnate Yuri Shefler, the owner, has been traveling the world spearheading his company SPI Group’s initiative personally to get into premium wineries. Shefler’s ship came in Auckland previous month.
Their agents have asked for absolute secrecy regarding the movements across New Zealand, but it is believed that it was aiming to come in Tasman Bay and call at Port Nelson before the timetable was altered.
After the collapse of Soviet Union in the year 1992, Shefler along with a group of investors proceeded in on forty three state-owned vodka brands that includes Moskovskaya and Stolichnaya, and went into US$ 50 million worth of debt to get them.