THE 390ft superyacht rumoured to be owned by billionaire Bill Gates is about to face its world debut as it goes up for sale.
Best known as “the Bill Gates yacht”, the ultra-luxury vessel is expected to find its new owner at the Monaco Yacht Show in September.
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The elusive ship, named Breakthrough, will be the largest yacht attending the annual show.
Once only known as Project 821, from Dutch-shipyard Feadship, Breakthrough will finally surface in Port Hercule, Monaco.
Breakthrough has been hailed as the world’s first hydrogen-powered superyacht – and comes with a staggering $645million (£476million) price tag.
With a basketball court, a hospital, multiple libraries, two offices and a cinema, the superyacht reportedly boasts a jaw-dropping level of amenities.
The superyacht can host up to 44 crew members at any given time, across 12 guest staterooms, two staff cabins, and 14 balconies.
Though the owner accommodation extends beyond a single deck.
The owner – be that Gates or another highly wealthy individual – would occupy the “completely private” four-story townhouse tucked away inside the yacht.
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“This includes both a spacious staircase lined with bookshelves and display nooks and an owner’s elevator,” according to Edmiston, which appears to be brokering the sale of the yacht.
Edmiston detailed in its listing: “At each deck level, there are inviting private lifestyle destinations to savour such as a coffee corner and games niche on the bridge deck, a library on the main deck, and a private dining room with a sea terrace and adjacent en suite stateroom on the lower deck.
“It creates, in essence, a secluded four-level townhouse-by-the sea within the much larger yacht.”
Elsewhere in the yacht is a pool with a moveable glass bottom that allows the deck to be transformed into a dining space, multiple hot tubs, steam room and a gym.
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Chief executive Jamie Edmiston, whose father founded the yacht brokerage in 2001, said Breakthrough was “the most extraordinary yacht ever built”.
He added that it will be “the one that will change it all” due to it being powered solely by liquid hydrogen and a next-gen fuel cell system.
Hydrogen fuel cells have been used to power both cars and rockets – but nothing has existed in the maritime sector.
There weren’t even any regulations for hydrogen storage and fuel-cell systems to go by, according to Feadship.
As the first superyacht to run on hydrogen alone, Breakthrough stores compressed liquid hydrogen below deck at a whopping -253°C.
The heat that is emitted when processing the hydrogen is then used in everything from the pool and steam room to the towel bars and flooring in the guest bathrooms.
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Edmiston, who worked closely on Project 821, said: “The brief was to build the greenest and most environmentally advanced yacht ever built, without compromise.
“It was a huge challenge, but one that the team has embraced and delivered on.
“The yacht we see today, designed by RWD and built by Feadship is without doubt the best yacht ever built.”
Jan-Bart Verkuyl, director of Feadship, added that the aim was always “to develop a new, clean technology not just for this project, but for the world”.
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