MONACO – It’s a high point at the start of each Monaco Yacht Show. The Heesen Yachts breakfast in a swank hotel is always a useful update of the work of the Dutch builder of 50-to-70m superyachts.
It’s a job CEO Arthur Brouwer handled with aplomb even in 2022, a year, Brouwer said, “has not been easy for us.” Addressing brokers, clients and suppliers, he said:
“It’s not all plain sailing. 2022 is proving to be a year to remember for all the wrong reasons. The invasion of Ukraine by Russian forces has caused Europe’s worst security crisis in decades. The entire world is now facing a long and difficult period of conflict with Russia.”
The crackdown on Russian oligarchs worldwide forced Heesen to become 100% Dutch-owned. It shifted the yard’s ownership into a Dutch foundation, away from Russian-Azerbaijani businessman Vagit Alekperov, saving the yard and all its jobs.
Brouwer said Heesen Yachts had delivered three yachts in 2022 and boasts an order book chock-a-block through 2025.
Heesen launched the Xventure four years ago. Brouwer said its latest explorer, the “XV67, “creates a new audience. The platform embodies all of Heesen’s performance innovations. It is not a re-invented commercial ship. Hybrid propulsion is now an option on all Heesen yachts. The XV67 is no exception.”
True to tradition, he also gave a state-of-the-superyacht-world update that should reassure many builders of large yards everywhere, giving the ballooning ranks of the ultrarich. He cited this data:
- The Credit Suisse Global Wealth Report shows that by late 2021, global wealth totaled 463.6 trillion, up 9.8% from 2020 and well over the average annual 6.6% rise recorded since 2000.
- The US leads the pack with 140,000+ ultra-rich individuals whose wealth exceeds $50 million. China is second with 32,710. There were 62.5 million millionaires in 2021, up 5.2 million from 2020.
- The post-Covid boom revealed record-breaking orders for superyachts of 40m and more: 134 in 2021 alone!
- The Ukraine war will set off a global economic slowdown and higher inflation. The IMF sees global growth slipping from 6.1% in 2021 to 3.6% in 2022 and 2023. “I expect most shipyards will be able to leap over this period with relative ease and absorb the decline in demand.”
Heesen’s top market is North America with the Middle East and rates the Middle East as “an up and coming spotlight region.”
