On Board Ngoni, the Breathtaking, $53 Million Sailing Yacht Also Known as The Beast

Ngoni is also for sale, in case you have close to $53 million ($52.7 million / €45 million, to more exact) to spare. If not, let’s window-shop together.

Ngoni is also known as The Beast, a most fitting moniker that speaks volumes to its capabilities on water. A true engineering and design masterpiece, it was built and delivered by Royal Huisman to its owner in 2017. It is based on a design by Dubois Naval Architects, and it is the last project esteemed designer Ed Dubois worked on before passing away.

The owner’s brief for the vessel read only this: “Build me a beast. Don’t build me a wolf in sheep’s clothing. This has to be an edgy and innovative weapon, fast and furious. I want to get off the wheel after a day of sailing feeling completely knackered from the excitement of hands-on fast sailing.”

That owner, believed to be oil industry executive Tony Buckingham, with a net worth estimated upwards of $700 million, is also an experienced sailor. He wanted a vessel that could perform excellently and he wanted something with clear racing yacht DNA. Ngoni is a sailing yacht or sloop – one of the largest and most beautiful ever built.

The total cost of the project was of a reported $50 million. Annual running cost is a further $1 to $3 million, but for the next owner who can afford it, it is well worth it. Ngoni is a striking vessel of incomparable elegance, with performance to match, and plenty of innovative elements that make it one of a kind.

Measuring 58 meters (190 feet) in length, Ngoni combines a slender aluminum hull with a huge rig for sailing. The reverse sheerline adds structural stiffness and the rounded plumb bow underwent tunnel testing to ensure minimal wind disturbance. The sailing rig is carbon composite, with the mast reaching 75 meters (247 feet) and the mainsail measuring 853 square meters (9.182 square feet). Designed to be deployed easily by the owner, the rig furls into the hull.

Because the owner asked for light, adjustable but firm steering, Ngoni features one of the largest composite rudders ever built. The lifting keel is made of milled solid aluminum parts, and reduces draft from 8.1 meters to 5.3 meters (26.5 to 17.3 feet), making the yacht incredibly fast.

On top of the hull is a sleek and understated superstructure of double-curved molded glass. It’s the maindeck, which houses the sat-nav desk, a lounge and a dining salon aft, all of them easily connected one to another through sliding the glass doors, and to the outside through glass windbreakers that are electronically controlled. In short, the entire maindeck can appear as a single continuous unit open to the outside, if the guests so desire it.

The interiors are by Rick Baker and Paul Morgan, and they’re just as striking as the exterior. Here, too, the owner was very demanding in the most challenging and vague way: “Don’t design a traditional yacht interior.” The result is a masculine design broken up by powerful colors, a welcome and decidedly elegant interior that invites relaxation and quality time with loved ones.

Materials used range from polished veneers to vivid resins, sculpted metal and rich fabrics, marble and onyx imported from Italy. The lounge includes a window-facing curved sofa and a dining table, with a separate dining area partially outdoors. The roof integrates at least three skylights, allowing in plenty more natural light.

Below deck are the three suites for the six guests: the master suite, a twin-bed guest room, and a second guest room with a queen-size bed. The guest rooms have ensuites, and are furnished elegantly, in warm, luminous colors. The master suite comes with its own superyacht-worthy gym and a study with a small bathroom, and its own bathroom with steam room. A hidden staircase leads from the master suite upstairs to the sundeck aft.

The crew of 9 or 10 people sleep in separate quarters forward, and have access to the mess attached to the professional galley.

Though apparently small, Ngoni comes with a garage that houses a Williams 565 Tender Diesel Jet boat, and an inflatable Bombard commando C3 sport boat for use by the crew. It also comes with a crane for lowering both to water. For entertainment, it offers a hot tub on the deck, plenty of lounge and tanning spaces, and an Olympic-size diving board.

Powered by a single MTU 8V 2000 M72 diesel engine delivering 966 hp, Ngoni can hit top speeds of 17 knots, and cruises at 12 knots for a range of 4,000 nautical miles.

Here is The Beast in motion: