‘RM3 million upkeep bill akin to having grand parties daily’
LANGKAWI: Spending RM3 million a month on the maintenance of a mega yacht is akin to having a lavish party daily on board while running the yacht’s utilities at all times, according to a luxury yacht specialist.
Mega Yacht Club of Vanuatu Ltd operation director Nicholas de Souza said such amount would be more than enough to engage highly-paid crew members and senior ship captains on permanent basis, as well as having additional service staff of up to 25 people.
“But to spend RM3 million (on monthly yacht maintenance)..., it has to be daily parties or super grand parties on weekly basis,” he told Bernama.
De Souza said this in response to a news report that it cost an estimated RM3 million a month to maintain super yacht Equanimity, which had been embroiled in controversy following allegations that it had been bought using funds from 1Malaysia Development Bhd (1MDB).
The 91.5m vessel arrived in Port Klang on Tuesday after the Indonesian authorities agreed to release the vessel to their Malaysian counterparts.
At its length, de Souza said, the Equanimity was considered a “mega yacht”.
He said no marina in Langkawi, as of now, had the capacity to take in a vessel of such volume.
Having the experience of handling a fleet of mega yachts in several countries, he said the purported maintenance cost of the Equanimity was well above the normal expenditure of any luxury yacht that he knew.
“Based on that figure, the crew and guests would live in luxury, much more than staying in sixstar hotels for a long period.”
De Souza said even though the cost could vary according to the place, basic maintenance expenses for luxury yachts in Langkawi could be about RM75,000 a month, involving minimum crew and berthing charges.
“If it (the Equanimity) is (maintained) here, it (allocating RM3 million a month) would be like having all crew staying at a highclass hotel, keeping watch on board at all time and entertaining guests almost on a daily basis.”