It seemed that no other superyacht could beat the crazy saga of Amadea, the infamous Russian-owned floating mansion that cruised for 18 days, going from Mexico to Fiji, only to be frozen as soon as it got there, and later escorted by U.S. authorities to Hawaii. But the equally-stunning Nord is giving it a run for its money.
Data from maritime tracking platforms shows that by the єɴԀ of September, theNordsuperyacht was still chilling in the modest port of Vladivostok, Russia – an unusual choice for a massive luxury yacht, but a safe one.
The spectacular 464-foot (141.5 meters) vessel that had been launched by Lurssen just the previous year, with an estimated worth of $500 million, was linked to Alexey Mordashov. A steel tycoon and one of the richest men in Russia, Mordashov was one of the oligarchs that were sanctioned for their alleged ties to the Kremlin.
At the time, this location indicated a lucky break for the opulent superyacht, preventing it from getting seized like many other similar luxury toys. But the motivation behind its next moves is still unclear. After cruising all the way to Hong Kong last month and causing an international scandal, it then chose Cape Town as its next destination.
Authorities in both locationsɾєρօɾτedly statedthat they would refuse to reinforce the U.S. sanctions against the yacht’s owner, but it never even got to that point. Nord quickly left Hong Kong, and it seemed that it had not docked in Cape Town, where it was supposed to arrive yesterday.
The disappearing act is not surprising, though, because the vessel did switch off its location transponders while it was supposedly en route to South Africa. This could have indicated a sudden change of ρłɑɴs, although it has also beenɾєρօɾτedthat yachts sometimes do that when cruising in the Indian Ocean due to the increased piracy risk.
In the єɴԀ, Nord seems to have traveled more than 7,000 nautical miles (not counting the journey from Vladivostok to Hong Kong) for nothing. Its current locationremains unknown,and its final destination is more mysterious than ever.
