By Robert A Emmanuel
The new year is often described as a time for second chances and the government hopes that, after legal turbulence in 2023, holding another auction in 2024 will yield better results for the sale of the infamous Alfa Nero.
Despite amending the law and seizing the 267ft superyacht in April 2023, the government has been plagued by legal challenges—primarily by Yulia Guryeva-Motlokhov, the daughter of Russian oligarch Andrey Guryev who claims that the vessel is under her name and the government had no right to seize it.
The Alfa Nero has been languishing in Falmouth Harbour for almost two years with government claiming it poses both an environmental and a security risk. The boat came to attention when Andrey Guryev, a known close associate of Russian President Vladimir Putin, appeared on international sanctions lists after the February 2022 invasion of Ukraine.
Compounding the legal battle is the fact that the two preferred bidders in the initial auction last June —Eric Schmidt and Warren Halle — have cooled their interest in the superyacht.
US tech billionaire Schmidt withdrew his US$67 million bid citing legal delays preventing him from acquiring the right to the vessel.
Meanwhile, Halle has sued the government over an alleged failure to adhere to its own auction rules which would have seen Halle named the preferred bidder after Schmidt failed to pay the money to the government within the agreed seven days, among other issues.
Chief of Staff in the Prime Minister’s Office, Lionel Hurst, said that while the government was interested in negotiating a price with Halle to drop the lawsuit and sell the superyacht, the American entrepreneur was quoting a price that the administration felt was unacceptable.
“We think that we’ll have to reopen the bidding because the second highest bidder had offered $65 million, and then of course he’s now attempting to lower that bid significantly in an effort to get it at a bargain,” Hurst said.
The Alfa Nero continues to cost the public, through the Citizenship by Investment fund, US$28,000 weekly in maintenance costs as well as paying salaries for crew members.
Although a potential date for the new auction wasn’t given by Hurst, ensuring the sale of the vessel without any legal challenges attached will be the priority for the government.
