Going, going, gone: bids sought in Amadea auction

Those interested in owning what’s been deemed “a gaudy, bad-taste display” now have their chance. Amadea – the superyacht seized in 2022, now docked in San Diego – is up for auction. Potential buyers keen to place a sealed bid need to do so before 10 September – and put down a $10 million initial deposit.

The auction’s being administered by the US’s National Maritime Services in collaboration with Fraser Yachts. The marketing information points out that Amadea’s never been commercially chartered or heavily used, and is ready for many years of global cruising.

The US Justice Department says Amadea was worth at least $300 million when it was seized in 2022 from a Russian oligarch. But no one expects it to raise that much. The ‘gaudy’ moniker comes from a law professor who says the superyacht’s buyer will also be “buying a lawsuit in a lot of ports”.

Huge cost involved for monthly maintenance

In February 2024, the US government urged a judge to let it hold the auction as Amadea was costing the government over $600,000 each month ($7m a year) to maintain — a bill that is ultimately being footed by US taxpayers.

That bill included $360,000 to pay the crew, $75,000 for fuel and $165,000 for maintenance, waste removal, food and other expenses, according to court papers filed at the time (9 February 2024).

The 106-metre superyacht Amadea, said to be owned by Russian billionaire Suleiman Kerimov (who has net worth of $16.4 billion, according to Forbes), was arrested by the Fijian Police Force in April 2022, two days after arriving in Fiji from Mexico. Kerimov had been sanctioned by the United States, Britain and the European Union.

The yacht — which was found to be housing a genuine Fabergé egg — has since been subject to a number of legal wrangles over its ultimate ownership, with oligarch Eduard Khudainatov, who is not sanctioned, challenging attempts to auction the vessel by claiming ownership of the vessel.

Legal battle delayed Amadea’s sale

Khudainatov’s claim on Amadea began a legal battle that delayed the yacht’s sale.

His representative, Adam Ford, told the Associated Press, that the sale of the yacht is “improper and premature” as Khudainatov is appealing a forfeiture ruling.

“We doubt it will attract any rational buyer at fair market price, because ownership can, and will, be challenged in courts outside the United States, exposing purchasers to years of costly, uncertain litigation.”

The expectation is that Khudainatov will seek proceeds from the sale of Amadea.

“Should the government press ahead simply to staunch the mounting costs it is imposing on the American taxpayer, we will pursue the sale proceeds, and any shortfall from fair market value, once we prevail in court,” says Ford.

The US authorities seized the ship in 2022. They presented evidence to Fijian authorities that Khudainatov had sold the yacht to Kerimov via a Monaco-based yacht brokerage in 2021.

In previous court filings, prosecutors have said Khudainatov is acting as Amadea’s “straw owner”.

The superyacht will be delivered to the highest bidder ‘as is, where is’.

Amadea’s details

Amadea, Latin for ‘God’s love’, was built at Lürssen shipyard and can accommodate up to 22 guests while cruising. It offers overnight accommodation for 16 guests across eight staterooms. There’s a steel hull, aluminium superstructure, and over 4,402 Gross Tons of internal volume.

Two elevators service all decks — one for guests, one for crew and service operations. It comes with three tenders – a 10.97m limousine tender, a 10.97m sports tender, and an 8.8m beach landing tender.

There’s a private cinema with D-Box motion seating, located near the spa area. The interior is by Francois Zuretti, while the design of the six deck behemoth is courtesy of Espen Øino.

Amadea has world-cruising autonomy with over 8,000 nautical miles of range, says the marketing blurb which then says the full helideck means the yacht is built to roam far beyond the typical seasonal ports.

Threat of lawsuits could put off buyers

But the threat of lawsuits could limit the number of interested buyers and their roaming in typical or other ports, Paul Stephan, a law professor at the University of Virginia told the New York Times.

“The majority of countries in the world that are not sanctioning Russia, they could easily be open to the claim that what the United States did was invalid,” says Stephan. “Whoever buys the yacht would be buying a lawsuit in a lot of ports.

“The Amadea is the perfect example of an asset that must have meant something to Kerimov,” he continues, asking how many others would spend hundreds of millions of dollars for “this very expensive, gaudy, bad-taste display?”