14 JUNE–JULY 2018 | International Boat Industry http://www.ibi-plus.com
HEADLINES International Marine News
SBenetti at the Beirut showMIDDLE EAST Italian superyacht
builder Benetti has joined forces
with Sirina Marine to promote the
Benetti brand in Jordan, Saudi
Arabia, Egypt, Iraq and Lebanon. The
agreement was signed between the
two companies at the recent Beirut
Boat Show.- IBI-plus.com May 16
YAMAHA FINANCIALS
JAPAN Yamaha Motor Co Ltd
reports sales of ¥405.6bn for its first
quarter ended December 31, 2018,
a 5.1% gain over the previous year.
The appreciating yen had an impact
on sales, though growth in the
marine, motorcycle and industrial
machinery segments absorbed
that impact.- IBI-plus.com May 10
SCIBS 2018
AUSTRALIA The 30th Sanctuary
Cove International Boat Show
(SCIBS) generated strong sales
worth millions of dollars and visitor
numbers were up by 10%. The event
was said to be the best since the
end of the global financial crisis,
reflecting the strengthening
position of the Australian boating
and yacht industry.- IBI-plus.com May 29
KNYSNA SOLD
SOUTH AFRICA The Knysna Yacht
Company has been sold to Grant
Boshard, who has taken over the
boutique catamaran producer from
long-time industry stalwart Kevin
Fouché. The Knysna-based company
is currently building a new 55t
model due for launch in 2019.- IBI-plus.com May 29
New yacht brand
launches Down Under
AUSTRALIA A new boat brand,
Longreef, is being marketed
in Australia by Andy Young,
designer of all three models –
the Longreef 50, Longreef 60
and Longreef 90. Up to three
orders for the first model, a
Longreef 60, were concluded
off-plan at the recent
Sanctuary Cove International
Boat Show (SCIBS).
Young is also the founder
and chief executive of the
BSA (Boating Syndication
Australia), which has built up a
client base of 2,000 customers
over the past 11 years. Several
hundred of those gave feedback
on the Longreef designs,
which are being built in China
at a prominent yard withsuperyacht experience. The
initial annual output will be 3-
Longreef 50s, two Longreef 60s
and one Longreef 90.
The hulls and
superstructure are being built
in China and then brought
to Queensland for fitting out
at the Rivergate Shipyard in
Brisbane, Australia.
Young told IBI: “We have
used the views of some 400
BSA customers to design the
Longreef models and I spent
a long time looking at many
Chinese builders before I
decided on our build partner.
We will be taking orders for
single purchases but also
introducing the models into
the BSA fleet.”South Africa
amends regulation
of foreign yachts
SOUTH AFRICA In a bid to
attract maritime tourism,
the South African Maritime
Safety Authority (SAMSA) has
streamlined the regulatory
requirements for yachts
visiting the country for
extended periods of time.
Foreign yachts will now
be issued with a six-month
‘Certificate of Fitness’ as
outlined in a new marine
notice updating previous
regulations governing ‘Safety
and certification requirements
for foreign recreational vessels
in South African waters’. The
notice makes special provision
for foreign yachts that may
not comply with specific safety
equipment requirements.BENETTI IN BEIRUT
SE Asia show organisers in JV
SOUTH EAST ASIA The
organiser of the Singapore
and Thailand yacht shows,
Verventia Pte Ltd, has joined
forces with Asia Rendezvous
Pte Ltd, organiser of the
Phuket, Penang and Singapore
Rendezvous events, to jointly
produce just one show in
Thailand and one in Singapore.
“The move was precipitated
by a request earlier in the year
from the Tourism Authority
of Thailand (TAT) to gather
the industry together in one
major event in Thailand so as
to demonstrate united support
for the government’s yacht
tourism initiative,” said the
organisers in a joint statement.
“In essence, after a three-
year campaign spearheaded
by the Thailand Yacht Show,
the Thai government has
agreed to change some of
the prohibitive yachting
regulations and allow foreign
yachts to charter in Thai
waters – effectively openingup the ASEAN cruising
grounds to superyachts from
overseas for the first time. This
initiative is now in its final
stages, with the Thai Marine
Business Association working
with the Ministries of Finance
and Transport to work out a
business model for collecting
VAT on charter income, rather
than on the value of the yacht.”
According to the partners,
the yachting industry has
been vocal for years that there
should only be one boat show
in each strategic location. The
show organisers acknowledge
that they have different, yet
complementary, strengths
and skill sets that combined
will create bigger and better
single events in each country.
Similarly, with their joined-
up resources and budgets,
they will be able to activate a
far-reaching promotional plan
that should draw many more
potential buyers and charterers
into the market.The new Phuket event
will be called the ‘Thailand
Yacht Show & Rendezvous’
and there will be an additional
event alongside the current
Singapore Yacht Show which
will be called the ‘Singapore
Yacht Show Rendezvous’.
Verventia CEO Andy
Treadwell explains: “It’s a
classic example of the whole
being greater than the sum of
its parts, from every point of
view. The TAT, our partners
and main sponsor of the
Thailand Yacht Show, asked us
to try to get everyone working
together instead of competing
and dividing the industry. The
major industry players asked us
to do exactly the same thing.”
The Thailand Yacht Show
& Rendezvous will take place
from January 4-7, 2019, with
the venue to be confirmed.
The Singapore Yacht Show
Rendezvous will replace the
Luxury Pavilion at SYS 2019,
which will run from April 11-14.