Friday morning in Singapore, automotive design superstar Henrik Fisker revealed a fuller view of the superyacht he?s building with Benetti that was teased back in December. The collaboration was greeted with anticipation from both supercar lovers and seafarers alike.
The Benetti ?Fisker 50? is a 164-foot watercraft designed in California and scheduled for production in coastal Livorno, Italy. Its estimated value when finished will be $37 million. Benetti has said it will make as many as it can sell.
?Benetti signaled they wanted an out-of-the-box design and with the Benetti Fisker 50, we?ve combined efforts to create just that,? Fisker said in an e-mail during his flight to Asia. ?The yacht is built perfectly for entertaining and is top-of-the-line in every respect for the most discerning buyer.?
This will be the first boat ever created by Fisker, who earned international stardom in the design community for creating the Aston Martin DB9 and Vantage and BMW Z8. His most recent project before the Fisker 50 was a Force 1 supercar he plans to make in Detroit. He also created the now-discontinued Fisker Karma electric car.
The boat is built on principles of sustainability?as much as a superyacht can be sustainable?with reclaimed wood, solar panels, and optional hybrid power all incorporated into its design. They don?t look quite as ?out of the box? as you might expect, but the three decks along the sides of the boat do well to evoke ocean waves, and the unique carbon fiber ?shark fins? out of sight toward the stern help the boat move better through the water, Benetti said. Those fins also incorporate strong ocean lights that illuminate the water at night.
Fisker added distinctive design features such as black carbon fiber throughout the boat as well, with a distinct white line running across the captain?s window and some walls that look to be entirely made of glass. There are three stainless steel bars below the bow that also evoke the grille of a car.
Young and Adventurous
The ideal buyer for the Fisker 50, Fisker said, ?is an international seasoned businessman with an exciting life or the young entrepreneurs who want to break free from traditional thinking.?
It shouldn?t be too hard to find him. According to the Knight Frank Wealth Report, superyacht sales were up 40 percent from 2014 to 2015. (The firm defines ?superyachts? as watercraft longer than 78 feet.) By the end of this year, 48 yachts longer than 100 meters (328 feet) will exist; last year there were only 16, according to Boat International.
The way those yachts are being used is changing, too. Nowadays, instead of being used for leisurely travel to well-trod beaches along the Caribbean and Mediterranean, superyachts are heading to what the report called ?more adventurous locations,? such as Asia and the Antarctic. This is who Fisker and Benetti are after: buyers who want to make a statement to the business world with a craft that can shift easily between hosting parties and conducting business meetings. Beaucoup bucks from charters may be an additional bonus; fellow superyachts can demand upward of $700,000 a week, which is on a par with, if not more than, chartering entire cruise ships.
Inside the New Yacht
Benetti officials declined to give specific details on interior finishings, but through a spokesman mentioned an interior ?beach club? lounge, a spa, several bars, and, of course, a Jacuzzi. Renderings seem to indicate wood flooring throughout, fabric covered walls, and marble. There is sleeping room for 12 guests in six bedrooms plus space for 11 crewmembers. The master suite has a library and separate bathroom with ocean views, a minibar, walk-in closets, a massive curved TV, a ceiling designed to look like the night sky, and a modernist hanging fireplace?yes, a fireplace. Each owner will be able to choose which kind of walls, showers, floors, ceilings, and doors will complete the interior of the vessel.
The sun deck includes a aft-facing relaxing area, a dining table, a bar, and a dual-use fire pit or enlarged ice bucket in the center of a circular sitting area that seats 12. (The fireplaces and fire pit burn a special kind of gel specifically designed for use on yachts.) Another deck has a movie theater with a large screen and reclining beds, which can be converted into a gym by sliding back the middle beds and removing the chairs.
According to Benetti, the Fisker 50 will be able to hit speeds of 15.5 knots and travel 4,000 nautical miles at 12 knots before refueling. While it's not going to best the $90-million, 253-foot Silver Fast, which has a cruising speed of 22 knots?or come near to the World Is Not Enough, which hits up to 70 knots?it's comparable to other transatlantic yachts such as the 11.11, a $73 million superyacht also built by Benetti. The Fisker 50's two massive Caterpillar C32 engines feed from a 16,378-gallon fuel capacity.
Construction on the boat, which is still in concept stage, will start later this year, though Benetti declined to say exactly when. The final sale date remains undetermined.
