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Russian Oligarch Roman Abramovich’s Two Superyachts Are Sailing Towards Each Other in the Mediterranean

Ship tracking platforms show that the billionaire’s yachts "eclipse" and "solaris" are relocating to the mediterranean, with no port destination specified., emma reynolds, emma reynolds's most recent stories.

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Russian oligarch and billionaire Roman Abramovich is on the move—and so are his superyachts.

After being slapped with sanctions in response to Russia ’s invasion of Ukraine, the billionaire was last seen on March 14 at an airport in Israel, where he has dual citizenship, according to Reuters .

Abramovich, who is currently worth an estimated $7.1 billion, according to Forbes , appears to be moving his yachts to safer waters. His 533-foot superyacht Eclipse , normally anchored year-round in the Caribbean, has been sailing east towards the Mediterranean since February 21, according to global ship tracking platform MarineTraffic. As of Wednesday, the ship is located off the coast of Algeria and is still sailing east with no port destination specified. The yacht, estimated to be worth over $600 million, is one of the largest and most expensive in the world , and seems to be cruising towards Abramovich’s other yacht, Solaris , in the Ionian Sea.

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Roman Abramovich’s “Solaris” superyacht.  Courtesy of Lloyd Werft

The 461-foot Solaris  is currently located in the Ionian Sea off the western coast of Greece and heading south. Solaris was most recently at a port in Barcelona, where it had reportedly been receiving repairs since late 2021 . The ship left without declaring a destination. However, it’s possible both Solaris and Eclipse are heading towards each other and are even eyeing ports in Israel where Abramovich is considered safe from sanctions.

Though a long-time ally of Russian President Vladimir Putin, Abramovich has denied having close ties to the Kremlin. This hasn’t stopped dozens of nations, including the US, UK and several EU countries, from implementing sanctions and asset freezes on the oligarch. The sanctions are part of a concerted multinational effort to pressure Russia’s wealthiest and most powerful individuals to help bring Russia’s war on Ukraine to an end.

Perhaps sensing the economic pressures to come, Abramovich made headlines just days after the Ukraine invasion for stating his intention to sell his beloved Chelsea Football Club in London for $2.5 billion. The billionaire said all proceeds would benefit Ukrainian refugees and “victims of the war,” which, notably, may also include Russian soldiers.

Russian oligarch and Chelsea Football Club owner Roman Abramovich appears to be seeking cover from international sanctions in Israel, where he has dual citizenship.  Associated Press

Russians own up to 10 percent of the world’s megayachts, so Abramovich is just one of many Russian billionaires who are moving their assets to avoid seizure by international authorities. This week, Italian police seized Russian oligarch Andrey Melnichenko’s 486-foot Sailing Yacht A, and earlier this month, France impounded the yacht Amore Vero , owned by Russian oil billionaire Igor Sechin. Other Russian billionaires have had their yachts impounded in other EU countries.

This isn’t the first time Russian oligarchs’ whereabouts have been made public. Florida teen Jack Sweeney, who once tracked Elon Musk’s jet, created a Twitter account —@RUOligarchJets—dedicated to tracking the private jets of Russian oligarchs, which is updated daily.

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Sanctioned oligarch Abramovich seen at Russia-Ukraine talks

In this image taken from a video provided by the Turkish Presidency, Russian Roman Abramovich, center, listens to Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdogan during the Russian and Ukrainian delegations meeting for talks in Istanbul, Turkey, Tuesday, March 29, 2022. Erdogan called for a cease-fire as the Russian and Ukrainian delegations resumed their two days of talks in Istanbul. (Turkish Presidency via AP)

In this image taken from a video provided by the Turkish Presidency, Russian Roman Abramovich, top center, 3rd from right, listens to Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdogan during the Russian and Ukrainian delegations meeting for talks in Istanbul, Turkey, Tuesday, March 29, 2022. Erdogan called for a cease-fire as the Russian and Ukrainian delegations resumed their two days of talks in Istanbul. (Turkish Presidency via AP)

FILE - Chelsea soccer club owner Roman Abramovich attends the UEFA Women’s Champions League final soccer match against FC Barcelona in Gothenburg, Sweden on May 16, 2021. Sanctioned Russian oligarch Roman Abramovich has swapped the skybox seat he once proudly occupied at his beloved Chelsea soccer club for a place on the sidelines of negotiations between Kyiv and Moscow aimed at bringing to an end the bloody war of attrition unfolding in Ukraine. (AP Photo/Martin Meissner, File)

In this photo provided by Turkish Presidency, Russian Roman Abramovich, far second left, listens to Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdogan during the Russian and Ukrainian delegations meeting for talks in Istanbul, Turkey, Tuesday, March 29, 2022. Erdogan called for a cease-fire as the Russian and Ukrainian delegations resumed their two days of talks in Istanbul. (Turkish Presidency via AP)

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ISTANBUL (AP) — Soccer club owner. Ally of Vladimir Putin. Sanctioned oligarch. Could diplomatic go-between be added to the resume of Roman Abramovich?

The 55-year-old billionaire has swapped the skybox seat he once proudly occupied at his beloved Chelsea soccer club in Britain for a spot on the sidelines of negotiations between Kyiv and Moscow aimed at ending Russia’s bloody war in Ukraine .

The silver-haired oil-and-aluminum tycoon stood in the background Tuesday as Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdogan entered a hall packed with negotiators in a government building adjacent to the 19th century Ottoman palace, Dolmabahce, on the shores of the Bosporus in Istanbul.

It was left to Kremlin spokesman Dmitry Peskov to try to explain Abramovich’s role.

Abramovich has been “ensuring certain contacts between the Russian and Ukrainian sides,” Peskov said, but is not an official member of the delegation. He said both sides have approved his role.

Ukraine’s ambassador to Britain, Vadym Prystaiko, said, however: “I have no idea what Mr. Abramovich is claiming or doing. He is not a part of the negotiation team.”

The talks appeared to yield a cautious step toward scaling back Moscow’s offensive when Deputy Defense Minister Alexander Fomin said Russia would “fundamentally” cut back operations near Ukraine’s capital of Kyiv and a northern city in a move to build trust.

Turkish Foreign Minister Mevlut Cavusoglu said the two sides made “the most meaningful progress” since the start of the negotiations at their meeting in Istanbul.

Just being in the room in Istanbul marks a remarkable turnaround for Abramovich, who has been sanctioned by the U.K. government and European Union, although he is conspicuous by his absence from a list of oligarchs sanctioned by the United States.

Abramovich appears to have established contacts high in Ukrainian government circles, to go alongside his long-standing links to the Kremlin.

President Volodymyr Zelenskyy said Sunday that Kyiv had received “signals” with offers of help from Abramovich and others, along with requests to be spared from sanctions.

“Some of them were ready to help restore Ukraine after the war,” he said, before citing their offers: “‘We are ready to give money, we are ready to relocate business to Ukraine. We are now living in England or in Switzerland, we would like to do it. Is it possible not to be on the sanctions list?’”

Abramovich’s presence in Istanbul was all the more surprising as it came a day after reports that he may have been poisoned at an earlier round of talks.

The investigative news outlet Bellingcat reported Monday that Abramovich and two Ukrainian delegates suffered symptoms of nerve agent poisoning after attending talks on March 3, but all reportedly recovered.

The British Foreign Office said in a statement Tuesday that “the allegations are very concerning.” The Organization for the Prohibition of Chemical Weapons has not commented on the report.

Ukrainian Foreign Minister Dmytro Kuleba also voiced his concern, telling the 1+1 TV channel: “I advise anyone going to the negotiations with the Russian Federation not to eat or drink anything and preferably avoid touching any surfaces.”

U.S. Secretary of State Antony Blinken said he had no details on the poisoning reports, but that the reporting to that effect “raises concerns because Russia has a real track record,” a reference to past poisoning cases blamed on Moscow.

Peskov dismissed the reports as “part of the information war. These reports obviously do not correspond to reality.”

Abramovich’s press representative had no comment on the reported poisoning or on his involvement in Russia-Ukraine talks.

Abramovich amassed a fortune in Russia’s oil and aluminum industries following the 1991 breakup of the Soviet Union. In 2005, Russian state-owned energy giant Gazprom paid $13 billion for the Sibneft oil company controlled by Abramovich, allowing Putin’s Kremlin to recapture state influence in the lucrative energy industry.

In announcing sanctions against Abramovich, Prime Minister Boris Johnson’s government called him a “pro-Kremlin oligarch” with an estimated fortune of more than 9 billion pounds ($12 billion) who should be punished for his association with Putin. Abramovich also was linked with “destabilizing” and threatening Ukraine.

It was a further fall from grace for Abramovich, whose $2 billion investment in Chelsea over 19 years transformed the English Premier League team into a force in European football and earned it the nicknames “Chelski” and the “Roman Empire.”

He is being forced to sell the club after his assets were frozen as part of a crackdown on oligarchs following Russia’s Feb. 24 invasion. The Premier League also disqualified him from running the west London club and being a director. Abramovich has said proceeds of the club’s sale, which is subject to government approval, will go to a foundation he started for victims of the war in Ukraine.

He has been largely absent from Britain since 2018, when he withdrew an application to renew his visa amid a clampdown on rich Russians after a former Russian spy and his daughter were poisoned in the English city of Salisbury. Britain blamed Russia for the pair’s exposure to a nerve agent, an allegation Moscow denied.

He took Israeli citizenship in 2018, although it is not clear how much time he spends in the country. He has been rumored to be in Israel several times since the war erupted, according to the movements of planes purportedly belonging to him. He was seen about two weeks ago at Ben-Gurion airport.

The Solaris, a yacht belonging Abramovich, was seen docked in Turkey’s Aegean Sea resort of Bodrum earlier this month, Turkish media reports said. NATO-member Turkey has not joined other members of the alliance in sanctions on Russia. A second yacht belonging to him, the Eclipse, was seen docked at a port in the Turkish resort of Marmaris, other Turkish media said..

Corder reported from The Hague, Netherlands. Associated Press writers Danica Kirka in London, Matthew Lee in Washington and Josef Federman in Jerusalem contributed.

Follow the AP’s coverage of the war at https://apnews.com/hub/russia-ukraine

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A $600 million superyacht linked to the Russian billionaire Roman Abramovich has left a Spanish shipyard after undergoing repairs since 2021

• Oops! Something went wrong. Please try again later. More content below

A superyacht linked to Roman Abramovich has left a Spanish shipyard, according to MarineTraffic.

The $600 million yacht had been docked there for repairs since late 2021, one person told Reuters.

Abramovich hasn't yet come under sanctions imposed by the US or European Union.

A superyacht with ties to the Russian oligarch Roman Abramovich departed from Barcelona in Spain on Tuesday after undergoing repairs since last year.

The yacht's departure was first reported by Reuters .

The vessel, named Solaris, left the shipyard of the Spanish yacht-maintenance firm MB92 in Barcelona on Tuesday afternoon, according to the ship-tracking site MarineTraffic .

Solaris, which spans 140 meters, or 460 feet, has a price tag of $600 million and can hold up to 36 guests, according to SuperYachtFan , which said that Abramovich owns the yacht .

The yacht was finished in 2021 after being built by the German company Lloyd Werft, according to SuperYacht Times .

A person in the industry told Reuters that the yacht had been docked at the Barcelona shipyard since late 2021, but it wasn't clear where it was headed next.

"We never comment on the movements of the yacht or any other vehicles or vessels," a spokesperson for Abramovich told Reuters.

MB92 declined to comment to Reuters and Insider.

The news comes as the wealthiest Russians sought to move their yachts and private jets to different locations after the invasion of Ukraine in an attempt to protect their assets.

Abramovich, who has a net worth of $13.6 billion , according to a Bloomberg estimate, hasn't yet come under US or EU sanctions, which have been imposed on other Russian oligarchs and billionaires with ties to President Vladimir Putin since his troops invaded Ukraine.

Last week, Abramovich announced he was selling the English Premier League team Chelsea FC, with an asking price of $2.5 billion, The New York Times reported.

Read the original article on Business Insider

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Abramovich-linked yacht in Netherlands changed hands on day of Ukraine invasion

Exclusive: The 50-metre Aquamarine is under repair in dry dock in Vlissingen

• Russia-Ukraine war: latest updates

The 50-metre motor vessel, modest by oligarch standards, is covered in scaffolding and sitting under a hangar in dry dock, one of many such boats being refitted in the Dutch port of Vlissingen.

What sets the Aquamarine apart is that, until the day of the invasion of Ukraine, it belonged to Russia’s best-known businessman, Roman Abramovich , a Guardian investigation has revealed. On 24 February, ownership of the yacht passed from a company previously controlled by Abramovich to a close associate of his, the Russian businessman David Davidovich.

The Aquamarine is the fifth yacht to have been recently linked to Abramovich, who was placed under sanctions by the UK and EU for his reported links to the Russian president, Vladimir Putin. His fleet includes two megayachts worth more than $1bn, which were scrambled to Turkey after Abramovich was blacklisted, and two smaller boats currently moored in the Caribbean.

Davidovich told the Guardian that he was the owner of Aquamarine as well as the Jersey-domiciled company MHC Jersey Ltd, which is registered as the owner of the yacht on the maritime database MarineTraffic.

“I can confirm that I am the owner of MHC Jersey Ltd and the Aquamarine yacht,” Davidovich said in a written statement.

Davidovich also said he was the majority owner of the British Virgin Islands-listed Norma Investments, an investment vehicle that is listed as the only shareholder of Aquamarine’s owner MHC Jersey Ltd, according to Jersey public record.

The Wall Street Journal earlier reported , based on securities filings, that ownership of the Norma Investments, previously believed to be controlled by Abramovich, shifted to Davidovich the day Russia invaded Ukraine on 24 February. The restructuring was seen by experts as a way to avert the possible freezing of some of Abramovich’s assets.

Norma Investments, which had been named as a company belonging to Abramovich in several public filings in the past, had served as a vehicle for venture capital investments.

A separate entity called MHC (Services) Ltd also disclosed that Davidovich had taken control of the company on 24 February. MHC (Services) is registered at Chelsea Football Club’s Stamford Bridge stadium, although it is not connected with the club and provides consultancy services.

Both Davidovich and representatives of Roman Abramovich did not reply to requests for comment on Abramovich’s links to Aquamarine. Representatives of Abramovich said the oligarch was not the ultimate beneficiary of MHC Jersey Ltd.

Aquamarine is undergoing repairs at Damen Shiprepair, a Dutch firm that specialises in the construction and repair of luxury yachts. A source at the shipyard who asked for anonymity said that it was generally understood that it had been Abramovich’s yacht.

Aquamarine was built by the Dutch firm Heesen , who delivered it in 2021. At the time of construction, the luxury-lifestyle magazine Robb Report priced it at $40.3m (£33.8m).

Heesen on its website describes the vessel as a “fast-cruising aluminium semi-displacement yacht with crisp design language and enviable appeal … A shallow draft of only 2.15m makes her a versatile cruising yacht for both the clearwater bays of the Bahamas and the Mediterranean sea”. It can accommodate up to 12 people.

According to the source at the Damen shipyard, Aquamarine was brought in to Vlissingen for “structural changes”, on 16 November 2021 but the source said no work has been done on the ship since 10 March, the day the UK sanctioned Abramovich.

“Only the crew onboard is allowed to work on the boat. But Damen or any other subcontractors are not working on it.”

The Netherlands on Wednesday announced that 14 unnamed yachts linked to Russian sanctioned individuals – 12 of which are still being built – were seized by Dutch customs authorities as part of EU’s sanctions against Russia.

There is nothing to suggest that Aquamarine was among the vessels seized.

Dutch customs officials and the foreign ministry declined to comment on the ownership and status of Aquamarine, citing the country’s strict privacy laws. Damen also said it did not comment on the status of individual clients.

Davidovich said: “To my knowledge, Aquamarine is not subject to any sanctions.”

While a number of Russian sanctioned billionaires have seen their megayachts confiscated across ports in Europe , the former Chelsea owner has taken steps to avoid such a fate by moving his two giant vessels – the 140-metre Solaris and the 163-metre Ecliples – to Turkish ports last month beyond the reach of western sanctions.

Abramovich has not publicly commented on why the two vessels were moved to Turkey.

The Financial Times earlier reported that two more yachts linked to Abramovich were currently moored on the Caribbean Island of Antigua. The government of Antigua has since confirmed that the two yachts moored on its territory belonged to Abramovich.

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• Netherlands
• The super-rich

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A $700 million superyacht owned by the sanctioned oligarch Roman Abramovich is sailing toward his other $600 million vessel in the Mediterranean

Two superyachts owned by the Russian oligarch Roman Abramovich are sailing around the Mediterranean.

Abramovich's Eclipse is heading in the direction of his Solaris yacht, ship-tracking data shows.

There was no destination port for either superyacht listed on MarineTraffic's website.

A $700 million superyacht belonging to the Russian oligarch Roman Abramovich seems to be heading toward his other $600 million vessel in the Mediterranean Sea, ship-tracking data shows.

MarineTraffic's map suggests that if the two superyachts keep on their current courses, they would eventually meet in the Ionian Sea, a part of the Mediterranean separating Greece and Italy.

Eclipse, Abramovich's 533-foot superyacht, was just off the coast of Algeria on Tuesday, sailing east across the Mediterranean Sea, MarineTraffic data indicated . The ship — worth $700 million, according to SuperYacht Fan — has been underway from St. Martin in the Caribbean since February 21, the data shows.

Related video: The one thing most self-made millionaires do when they wake up

Abramovich's 460-foot vessel, Solaris, which was off the eastern coast of Italy on Friday, was between the coasts of southeastern Italy and Albania on Tuesday, MarineTraffic data indicated . The website showed Solaris moving south.

Some Russian oligarchs and billionaires believed to have close ties to President Vladimir Putin — including Abramovich — are moving themselves, their yachts , and their private jets in the wake of sanctions announced by international governments. Their assets could be seized as part of measures aimed at the Russian elite in response to Moscow's decision to invade Ukraine.

Abramovich is one of seven Russian oligarchs sanctioned by the UK on Thursday. The sanctions include freezing their assets and barring them from doing business with the country.

Other jurisdictions, including the European Union, have announced similar sanctions. Spanish authorities said on Monday that they had seized a $153 million superyacht that was later linked to the Russian oligarch Sergei Chemezov, the CEO of the Russian state-owned defense conglomerate Rostec and a close ally of Putin.

There was no destination port for Eclipse or Solaris listed on MarineTraffic's website, so it's unclear where Abramovich's superyachts will dock next. Solaris — worth $600 million, according to SuperYacht Fan — had been docked in a Spanish shipyard since late 2021 for repairs until it departed last week.

Reuters first reported that Abramovich was spotted in a VIP lounge at Ben Gurion Airport in Israel on Monday — the same day that flight-tracking data indicated a private jet linked to him flew from Israel to Istanbul. It was unclear whether Abramovich was on the plane, Reuters reported.

Read the original article on Business Insider

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Russian oligarch roman abramovich’s secretive $1b superyacht fleet revealed.

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Sanctioned Russian oligarch Roman Abramovich’s fleet of superyachts was revealed Friday to be more extensive than previously known following the discovery of two more luxury vessels in Antigua – both of which now face seizure.

British authorities have determined that Abramovich is the owner of the yachts Halo and Garçon, which have been the subject of persistent scrutiny while docked in Antigua as Western nations crackdown on the wealth of rich Russians during the Ukraine invasion.

Halo is valued at approximately $38 million, while Garçon is worth about $20 million, according to data from yacht valuation firm VesselsValue.

Abramovich’s ownership of the two additional superyachts came to light following an extensive investigation by the Financial Times .

A top Antiguan official said the island sought information on Wenham Overseas Limited, an Abramovich-linked and British Virgin Islands-based firm listed as the owner of Halo and Garçon. The firm is on the UK sanctions list.

In a letter to Antigua’s government, British officials said an investigation had determined that the “beneficial owner of Wenham Overseas Ltd is Roman Abramovich.”

Ronald Sanders, Antigua’s ambassador to the United States, said the country is willing to detain and seize both vessels if it receives a formal request from the UK government.

“The only way we can (seize the vessels) is if the British in their mutual legal assistance treaty request establish that this is a person they want because he has committed some crime,” Sanders told Reuters.

Abramovich was already known to be the owner of the $600 million Solaris and the $700 million Eclipse, each of which fled to sea last month after the United Kingdom sanctioned the oligarch. Both yachts were last known to be docked in Turkey .

The Russian billionaire may also still own a fifth yacht, the $11 million Sussurro, that he first purchased in 1998, according to the FT. While Abramovich reportedly gave the yacht to his ex-wife following their divorce, the outlet said a source with knowledge of his fleet and other documents showed the oligarch was still linked to the vessel through another firm.

Abramovich and other oligarchs have scrambled to protect the trappings of their wealth during the increasingly harsh crackdown. The UK sanctions froze Abramovich’s assets and forced him to sell his ownership stake in the Premier League soccer club Chelsea.

Meanwhile, reports have surfaced that Abramovich may have been poisoned alongside Ukrainian officials last month while attending peace talks aimed at ending the invasion – a sign that the oligarch’s relationship with Russian President Vladimir Putin has frayed.

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Roman Abramovich docks luxury superyacht in Turkey's Bodrum

Second yacht owned by mr abramovich also seems to be on its way to turkey, says marine traffic.

Two superyachts linked to Russian billionaire Roman Abramovich were spotted on the Turkish coast on Tuesday, 'Eclipse' and 'My Solaris'. Mr Abramovich is among several wealthy Russians added to an EU blacklist as governments act to seize their yachts and other luxury assets. AP

Live updates: follow the latest news on Russia-Ukraine

A superyacht linked to Russian billionaire Roman Abramovich docked in the Turkish tourist resort of Bodrum on Monday, after skirting the waters of EU countries that have imposed sanctions on the oligarch over Russia's invasion of Ukraine.

Mr Abramovich was among several wealthy Russians added last week to an EU blacklist, and EU governments have acted in recent days to seize yachts and other luxury assets from them.

World governments are seeking to isolate Russian President Vladimir Putin and his allies over the invasion of Ukraine , which the Kremlin calls a "special military operation".

Last week, Mr Abramovich flew to Moscow after leaving Istanbul in his private jet.

Flight-tracking data showed it was a second trip by a jet linked to him between the Turkish city and the Russian capital in three days.

There was no indication that Mr Abramovich was on the 140-metre yacht Solaris when it docked in Bodrum on Monday afternoon, after it left Montenegro's Adriatic resort town of Tivat on March 13.

Since then the vessel, which sails under a Bermuda flag according to monitoring site Marine Traffic, had tracked south and rounded the Greek island of Crete in recent days before reaching Turkish waters on Monday morning.

It spent the day motoring north, hugging the Turkish coast and steering away from nearby Greek islands, before arriving in Bodrum where pictures showed the imposing white vessel towering over other moored boats.

Moonlight II is so big it dropped anchor outside Dubai Harbour. The 91.4-metre vessel can carry 36 guests in 18 cabins along with 35 crew. All photos: Pawan Singh / The National

The superyacht was built in a German shipyard and first took to the sea early last year. It is one of a string of yachts owned by Mr Abramovich, according to reports in luxury goods publications SuperYachtFan, SuperYacht and Forbes .

Its latest journey began on March 8 when it left a Barcelona shipyard where it had been undergoing repairs.

Chelsea's Roman Abramovich and other Russians have assets frozen after UK sanctions

A second yacht linked to Mr Abramovich , Eclipse , also seemed to be on its way to Turkey, according to Marine Traffic.

Several groups have been confirmed as bidders to buy English soccer club Chelsea from Mr Abramovich , who was also hit by British government sanctions after Russia's invasion.

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One of Russian oligarch Roman Abramovich’s more ‘modest’ superyachts changed ownership on the same day Russia invaded Ukraine

• A yacht linked to oligarch Roman Abramovich changed hands hours after Russia invaded Ukraine. 
• Abramovich appears to have transferred it to his associate, David Davidovich, The Guardian reported .
• At 164 feet, the Aquamarine is modest compared to Abramovich's 536-foot Eclipse and 460-foot Solaris.

On February 24, the day that Russia invaded Ukraine, a $40.3 million superyacht named the Aquamarine changed owners, according to an investigation  The Guardian published Friday.

Based on public records, Roman Abramovich transferred ownership of the Aquamarine to an associate, the businessman David Davidovich, the outlet reported. 

Forbes has called Davidovich "Abramovich's much lower-profile right-hand man."

The Guardian tracked the yacht's apparent ownership swap through two companies, MHC Jersey Ltd, which is registered in New Jersey, and an entity called Norma Investments, which is listed in the British Virgin Islands. 

Abramovich was thought to be in charge of Norma Investments, but mere hours after Russia attacked Ukraine, Davidovich became the owner, per securities filings previously reported by the Wall Street Journal .

The Guardian reported that Norma Investments is the only listed shareholder in MHC Jersey Ltd, per New Jersey public records. MHC Jersey Ltd is also the owner of the Aquamarine yacht, per MarineTraffic. 

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The Aquamarine is currently dry-docked Vlissingen, a port in the Netherlands, and while Dutch authorities seized 14 yachts on Wednesday , representatives declined to comment to The Guardian if the Aquamarine was among them.  

Compared to Abramovich's megayachts, the Eclipse and the Solaris, the Aquamarine is modest: it comes in at 164 feet. The Eclipse is 536 feet , and the Solaris is 460 feet .

The $600 million Solaris and the $700 million Eclipse are docked in Turkey , and two other yachts are in the Caribbean . All appear to be on the run from sanctions.

The UK, EU, and Canada have sanctioned Abramovich, but Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy asked the US not to sanction him, saying that Abramovich could potentially be a peace negotiator, the Wall Street Journal reported . He has reportedly assisted with prisoner exchanges and escape routes .

Davidovich told The Guardian in a statement that he could "confirm that I am the owner of MHC Jersey Ltd and the Aquamarine yacht," as well as the majority owner in Norma Investments, and said he did not think the Aquamarine was subject to sanctions.

Representatives for Abramovich told The Guardian that he is not the ultimate beneficiary of MHC Jersey.

The Aquamarine is currently moored for repairs at Damen Shiprepair, where an anonymous source told the Guardian it was "generally understood that it had been Abramovich's yacht," the outlet reported. 

The source added that the vessel went into Damen in November 2021 but that no one but its existing crew has worked on it since March 10, when Abramovich was sanctioned by the UK.

In addition to his status as a Russian oligarch , Abramovich is known as the owner of Chelsea FC, the English Premier League soccer team, which he bought in 2003. Last month, he announced plans to sell the club amid sanctions, apparently for $2.5 billion, the New York Times reported.

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Antigua confirms Roman Abramovich owns two yachts moored on island

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The Antiguan government has established that two yachts moored in the Caribbean island belong to Roman Abramovich, confirming a Financial Times investigation that revealed the vessels appeared to be owned by the sanctions-hit oligarch.

The FT reported this week that boats docked in Antigua’s Falmouth Harbour were owned by a British Virgin Island company with ties to Abramovich, prompting the Caribbean nation to call on the UK government to help confirm whether the oligarch was their ultimate owner.

In a letter to the British High Commissioner to Barbados seen by the FT, Antigua’s minister of foreign affairs Paul Chet Greene said the island’s government had requested information on whether the owner of the BVI company, Wenham Overseas Limited, is on Britain’s sanctions list, in light of “persistent allegations by the Financial Times that the vessels could be owned by Mr Roman Abramovich”.

The letter then confirmed that the British High Commission had provided Antiguan authorities with a letter “from the Financial Investigation Agency of the British Virgin Islands which states the beneficial owner of Wenham Overseas Ltd is Roman Abramovich”.

Abramovich, the owner of Chelsea Football Club, has been placed under sanctions by the UK and the EU, though not by the US, for his allegedly close ties to Russian president Vladimir Putin.

While Antigua said this month that it would enforce all US, EU and UK sanctions on Russian entities and individuals, the island nation initially struggled to verify the ownership of the two boats.

Antigua’s confirmation of Abramovich’s ownership of the yachts raises the prospect that they could be seized . The letter noted that Antigua “will provide full assistance to the Government of the United Kingdom” if it receives a request under the two nations’ Mutual Legal Assistance Treaty.

British officials confirmed the government was in contact with the authorities of Antigua and Barbuda and was providing assistance. The UK said it would not comment on discussions.

The yachts in question — called Halo and Garçon — are worth about $38mn and $20mn respectively, according to valuation service VesselsValue.

Halo was built for Australian billionaire James Packer and was originally named EJI after the initials of his three children. However, the casino heir put the yacht up for sale a few months after it was delivered in 2018, reportedly because it was “too small”.

Garçon is a 67-metre explorer vessel designed to carry helicopters and an “armada of water toys”, and was built for Ukrainian billionaire Yuriy Kosiuk, who sold the so-called support yacht last year.

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