THE YARD REPORT III — ITALY

WIDER YACHTS
WIDER has two shipyards, both located in the “Le Marche” region of Italy. The original yard in Castelvecchio di Monte Porzio was formerly the production facility of Pershing Yachts. Tilli Antonelli, the founder of Pershing, left the company in 2010 to start the WIDER brand and today he uses the same building to produce the WIDER Express Cruiser range of 32-foot and 42-foot production yachts.

In Ancona, a new structure was built to house WIDER’s Superyacht Division; this is located on the same street as CRN, ISA and Cantiere delle Marche. It’s kind of a superyacht version of Thunderbolt Row in Miami. The Superyachts Division completed and launched its first vessel in October 2015. This was a 150-foot all-aluminum vessel that is notable for its use of diesel electric power, as well as its ability to house a 32-foot express cruiser tender inside the transom. Panels around the transom open to allow the tender to be launched, and stay open to form a platform surrounding an indoor swimming pool where the tender had previously been.

When the 150-foot yacht left the shed, a 165-foot yacht immediately took its space. The hull and superstructure of this vessel had been welded in a nearby facility, so workers were able to start the work of fitting out as soon as it arrived. The 165-foot yacht is strongly based upon the 150, with similar styling and just a few changes to the layout. The most notable feature is the addition of a personal submarine in the transom garage, in addition to the 32-foot express cruiser. Launch is scheduled for the end of 2016. True to the company’s strapline of “Never enough,” WIDER has a number of other projects under consideration and is open to discussing fully custom construction.

COLUMBUS YACHTS
Columbus Yachts is a brand of the Palumbo Group, a company well known in the yachting industry for its superyacht repair and refit facilities in Malta and Marseille. The shipyard is located in the heart of Naples’s port. A visit to this yard reveals that Palumbo is also a significant player in the shipping industry. Tankers, cruise liners and large ferries are regular visitors to Palumbo and there always are a number of sizeable craft tied to the docks to have work done.

The Columbus Yachts offices overlook the port, and are close to a dedicated shed in which a 70-meter superyacht is being built. The Columbus Oceanic 70 has been designed by the Italian company Vafiadis and Associates. It makes up part of the Oceanic range that span from 50 meters to 80 meters in length. An indication of the financial muscle behind the company, Columbus is building this yacht on spec; making it one of the largest new build yachts actually in construction available for sale today.

As a reference to quality and engineering, Columbus points to the recently launched 57-meter TAIBA and 40-meter DIVINE. The latter vessel employed a hybrid propulsion system that benefits from Palumbo’s extensive experience in commercial shipping, whilst TAIBA was a fully custom build using more conventional propulsion. Columbus offers a variety of vessels from fast tenders to large superyachts and has considerable production capacity and pedigree through its parent company. It also is available for fully custom construction.

For more information on either of these yards, please contact Sales Broker David Seal at David.Seal@NorthropandJohnson.com.