18 Sep 2012

Crescent Yachts suspends operations and reduces in-build superyacht price

By Esther Barney

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Crescent Yachts has suspended operations, says a former member of the British Columbia company’s management team, after a client defaulted on payments for an unfinished 43.9m composite-hulled tri-deck motoryacht. The superyacht in question is approximately 70 per cent completed and, under court orders, is for sale for US$14.5m (having just been reduced by US$4.4m, approximately 25 per cent).

The incomplete vessel was originally listed for sale by the courts in October 2011. In an affidavit sworn to the Supreme Court of British Columbia in May 2011, the company’s accountant commented that at the time the Crescent customer owed the shipyard in excess of $4.9m, starting with defaults on payment in January 2010, which had a “devastating effect on Worldspan and its subsidiaries”. At the time when project was first announced, its completion had been slated for midway through 2010.

The stalled yacht project is the largest to date from Crescent Yachts, which is owned by holding company Worldspan Marine and was founded in 1986. The yard has completed 20 superyacht projects up to this point, having first delivered three vessels over 30m to market in 1991 from the Maple Ridge facilities.



The broker for her sale, Neal Easterly of Fraser Yachts, said that at present the project has cost almost US$25 million and therefore her current price tag should prove very attractive to potential buyers. She is expected to take approximately another 10 months of build time and US$8-9 million of investment in order to be completed. Areas of the specification – such as AV, navtronics, teak decks, lighting, fixtures and interior woodwork – have yet to be installed or chosen, thus providing a level of customisation to personal preference for the buyer.

With an original hull design by Jack Sarin, and bulbous bow and propeller tunnels added by George Rodden, the interior design was done by Jonathan Quinn Barnett. Easterly commented that the interior has a similar signature style of the designer to recently sold Delta Marine motoryacht Monarch.

Easterly explained that because this is a federal court-imposed sale, the emotional element will be taken out of considering offers and that the court is keen for a sale; he added that it could be an “outrageous buy”, including considering the cost of completing the yacht, in terms of the reduced price compared with similar yacht projects on the market.

He expects the court proceedings to be relatively quick and emphasised that under Canadian law, unlike US law, the title of the yacht will be free and clear of all liens. The creditors have reached an agreement that they will receive proceeds of the sale from the court, so there will be no repercussions from creditors at the sale of the yacht, said Easterly. The project can be completed at the Crescent Yachts yard or taken elsewhere for the final stages of the construction, he added.

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