A $700 million superyacht owned by the sanctioned oligarch Roman Abramovich is sailing toward his other $600 million vessel in the Mediterranean
- Two superyachts owned by the Russian oligarch Roman Abramovich are sailing around the Mediterranean.
- Abramovich's Eclipse is heading in the direction of his Solaris yacht, ship-tracking data shows.
A $700 million superyacht belonging to the Russian oligarch Roman Abramovich seems to be heading toward his other $600 million vessel in the Mediterranean Sea, ship-tracking data shows.
MarineTraffic's map suggests that if the two superyachts keep on their current courses, they would eventually meet in the Ionian Sea, a part of the Mediterranean separating Greece and Italy.
Eclipse, Abramovich's 533-foot superyacht, was just off the coast of Algeria on Tuesday, sailing east across the Mediterranean Sea, MarineTraffic data indicated. The ship — worth $700 million, according to SuperYacht Fan — has been underway from St. Martin in the Caribbean since February 21, the data shows.
Abramovich's 460-foot vessel, Solaris, which was off the eastern coast of Italy on Friday, was between the coasts of southeastern Italy and Albania on Tuesday, MarineTraffic data indicated. The website showed Solaris moving south.
Some Russian oligarchs and billionaires believed to have close ties to President Vladimir Putin — including Abramovich — are moving themselves, their yachts, and their private jets in the wake of sanctions announced by international governments. Their assets could be seized as part of measures aimed at the Russian elite in response to Moscow's decision to invade Ukraine.
Abramovich is one of seven Russian oligarchs sanctioned by the UK on Thursday. The sanctions include freezing their assets and barring them from doing business with the country.
Other jurisdictions, including the European Union, have announced similar sanctions. Spanish authorities said on Monday that they had seized a $153 million superyacht that was later linked to the Russian oligarch Sergei Chemezov, the CEO of the Russian state-owned defense conglomerate Rostec and a close ally of Putin.
There was no destination port for Eclipse or Solaris listed on MarineTraffic's website, so it's unclear where Abramovich's superyachts will dock next. Solaris — worth $600 million, according to SuperYacht Fan — had been docked in a Spanish shipyard since late 2021 for repairs until it departed last week.
Reuters first reported that Abramovich was spotted in a VIP lounge at Ben Gurion Airport in Israel on Monday — the same day that flight-tracking data indicated a private jet linked to him flew from Israel to Istanbul. It was unclear whether Abramovich was on the plane, Reuters reported.