Following the success of their 50m Vertige S501, launched at the 2017 Monaco Yacht Show, the quick sale of of her hybrid-powered sister-ship S502 Elettra, currently in build and due to launch in February 2019 for an early May 2019 delivery, and the charter success of the Vertige, which was delivered last year and did over 20 weeks of charter and covered more than 12,000 trouble-free miles between the Mediterranean and the Caribbean, Tankoa have decided to add two new superyachts to their fleet and to start building them on spec.

“Building on spec represents a major investment even for a financially strong, debt free shipyard, but it makes strategic sense by reducing the delivery time,”says Edoardo Ratto, General Manager at Tankoa. “Many owners are not interested in the first 6-8 months it takes to build the hull and superstructure, but they do want to be involved in the layout and interior décor, and in the choice of features and equipment, which can be decided when the metal work is already well advanced.”

Construction work has started at Tankoa’s metal work facility in La Spezia, Italy, on two all-aluminium, sub-500GT 50m sister ships to S501: the S501 type Hull#5 and S502 Elettra type Hull#6.

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The new projects have the same naval architectural platform and exterior design to that of their predecessors and their basic general arrangement is also similar with fold down terraces in the owner’s suite on the main deck forward, a side-loading tender garage aft, and a large beach club at the transom. However, prospective clients will be able to tailor both the interiors and exterior layout to suit their own preferences.

Hull#5 will be powered with conventional diesel propulsion, whereas Hull#6 will come with a hybrid propulsion package developed in collaboration with Diesel Center in La Spezia. Like her sister ship, she will have four flexible propulsion modes: diesel-electric, full electric, traditional diesel and full-speed mode.

“Given the direction the market is moving in, reflected in the investment engine manufacturers are making on hybrid solutions, we decided three years ago to push forward and build the first 50m ‘Elettra’ with hybrid propulsion, providing excellent performances and range combined with reduced emissions and quieter cruising,” says Edoardo Ratto. “It all comes down to a question of customer choice.”

Michel Karsenti, Sales & Marketing director, says of their decision to build on spec:“In today’s market, affluent clients do not want to wait for the time it takes to build a yacht under 500 GRT from scratch. Building on spec is a fantastic solution for many reasons. Not only will a client be able to come to us and see his future boat already well advanced, he will also be able to choose his décor and layout, and take delivery the following season. Moreover, with a boat already half-way built, they don’t have to worry about putting together bank guarantees. As strong as Tankoa is, having to deal with financial security is always a process owners don’t like to handle. Instead, it is the shipyard that takes all the risk with its own cash flow. With this new spec build programme in place, the plan is to start a new build every time one sells…”

Construction work on Hull#5 and Hull#6 began first week of May and both yachts will be available for delivery for the 2020 summer season.