Photo: Lurssen
The saga of the secretive Nord continues. Unlike the infamous Amadea, which was seized by Fiji authorities soon after its arrival, enabling the U.S. to eventually take it away, the Nord superyacht seems to be strangely protected. After Hong Kong, South Africa, where the superyacht is headed, also refuses to implement the sanctions against its owner.
The $500 million brand-new yacht allegedly owned by one of the top three richest men in Russia, Alexey Mordashov, is currently on a strange journey. Instead of staying put at Vladivostok, the Russian port where it docked soon after the first international sanctions against oligarchs were announced, the massive 464-footer (141.5 meters) cruised to Hong Kong. But, after the U.S. reportedly asked local officials to seize it, which they refused to do, Nord took off again.
Maritime tracking data shows that the superyacht is headed toward Cape Town, where it’s due to arrive by November 9. It’s not even there yet, but it had already sparked controversy. This time, between local and state officials. Bloomberg reports that Geordin Hill-Lewis, the mayor of Cape Town, wanted to not even allow Nord to dock there and asked the government to deny it entry.
But Vincent Magwenya, President Cyril Ramaphosa’s spokesman, made it very clear that that’s not going to happen. The official response was eerily similar to the one that Hong Kong gave previously, stating that third parties have no legal obligation to implement sanctions drafted by the U.S. and EU. It’s not surprising since South Africa also abstained from the UN vote condemning the invasion of Ukraine back in March.
It’s obvious that these locations were chosen by Nord’s owners precisely for this reason, but it’s not obvious what the end game is. For now, the stunning Lurssen superyacht seems to have the green light to dock in South Africa without the risk of getting seized. But will it be able to avoid the fate of Amadea forever?
Maritime tracking data shows that the superyacht is headed toward Cape Town, where it’s due to arrive by November 9. It’s not even there yet, but it had already sparked controversy. This time, between local and state officials. Bloomberg reports that Geordin Hill-Lewis, the mayor of Cape Town, wanted to not even allow Nord to dock there and asked the government to deny it entry.
But Vincent Magwenya, President Cyril Ramaphosa’s spokesman, made it very clear that that’s not going to happen. The official response was eerily similar to the one that Hong Kong gave previously, stating that third parties have no legal obligation to implement sanctions drafted by the U.S. and EU. It’s not surprising since South Africa also abstained from the UN vote condemning the invasion of Ukraine back in March.
It’s obvious that these locations were chosen by Nord’s owners precisely for this reason, but it’s not obvious what the end game is. For now, the stunning Lurssen superyacht seems to have the green light to dock in South Africa without the risk of getting seized. But will it be able to avoid the fate of Amadea forever?
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