on 7 Oct 2022
The 142m Lürssen yacht Nord arrived into Hong Kong unexpectedly this week
A megayacht believed to belong to the sanctioned Russian billionaire Alexei Mordashov has anchored in Hong Kong, according to Marine Department records.
The logs show that the 142m Lürssen yacht Nord arrived in the SAR on Wednesday at 4.14pm HKT (October 5), after departing from Vladivostok on September 28. The yacht has since been anchored at Western Quarantine and Immigration Anchorage, under the agency of Lodestone Yachts.
AIS records show that Nord originally set a course for Da Nang in Vietnam, before switching its destination to Hong Kong on October 3.
Mordashov is the main shareholder and chairperson of the Russian steel and mining company Severstal. He has an estimated fortune of US$18.9b, according to the Bloomberg Billionaires Index.
READ: Could the spotlight on Russian superyachts open up ownership?
Hongkongers were quick to post pictures of the distinctive megayacht on social media:
Are we all just ignoring the fact that the Nord, a ship that fled seizure under sanctions due to ownership by Alexei Mordashov, a pro-Putin oligarch, is currently just casually anchored in Hong Kong…? pic.twitter.com/pFtXvOE1EJ
— Jambo Stuart-Clarke (@JamboSC) October 6, 2022
Russian super yacht Nord spotted in #HongKong waters pic.twitter.com/7Ve89PgJ9f
— Nandita M (@mnandita) October 6, 2022
Features on board Nord — estimated to be worth US$300m — include a gym, swimming pool, cinema, beach club, tender and toys garage, a spa room, sauna and beauty salon.
After Putin’s invasion of Ukraine in February, Nord sailed to the Seychelles and then left for Vladivostok on March 12, as Western powers set out sanctions against some of Russia’s wealthiest businesspeople and began to seize their yachts.
It is not known how long Nord will be in Hong Kong, or why the vessel has chosen to sail to the SAR. Visiting yachts can stay in Hong Kong for a maximum of 182 consecutive days, with permission to remain generally granted on a monthly basis.