Alfa Nero, the 81-meter Oceanco-built superyacht, has been sold to a new unnamed owner for $40 million. The yacht was seized in 2022 in Falmouth Harbor, Antigua following the sanctioning of her owner, Andrey Guryev, by the U.S. government following the Russian invasion of Ukraine.
Following Alfa Nero’s seizure, the U.S. Treasury Department cleared the yacht for sale, nearly auctioning her off to Google CEO Eric Schmidt in June 2023 for $ 67.6 million. Plans to complete the sale were thwarted by Yulia Guryeva, daughter of the Russian businessman, who claimed to be the proprietor of the yacht, thus precluding the Antiguan government from issuing a clear title when completing the transaction with Schmidt.
Over one year later, with the court dismissing Guryeva’s appeal, Alfa Nero re-emerged on the market and a sale was completed by Northrop and Johnson to a private buyer. “I am very happy that the ship is no longer the responsibility of the people and the government of Antigua and Barbuda “ – Ronald Sanders, Antigua and Barbuda’s ambassador to the US.