Abu Dhabi MAR, a major yachtbuilder in the heart of the Gulf Region, announces its acquisition of a controlling interest in the Nobiskrug Shipyard, Rendsburg, Germany. Nobiskrug, with 100 million euros in turnover, has been a significant shipbuilding enterprise since its founding in 1905. It has launched more than 700 vessels, and now has 420 employees working on a facility of about 173,000 m2 including 44,000 m2 under cover.

Nobiskrug has drydocks of 151- and 193-meter length. Its most recent launch is the World Superyacht Award-winning 74-meter Siren, with exterior and interior design by Newcruise Yacht Projects. Nobiskrug currently has five large yachts under construction. Since its founding two years ago, Abu Dhabi MAR shares common ownership with the CMN Shipyard in Cherbourg, France, noted for expertise in building military and commercial vessels.

CMN entered yachtbuilding in 1960, and is highly regarded for its current “Line 60” (197-foot) yachts designed by CMN in collaboration with Andrew Winch. It has launched two in the series this year, Slipstream and Cloud 9, and has the third under construction. Abu Dhabi MAR has four yachts under construction.

The Swift141 and Swift135 are conversion of Dutch-built navy frigates, 462 and 442 feet in length respectively. The Swift141, set for launch later this year, is shaped and styled by Pierrejean Design Studio in Paris. There are approximately 75 yachts 60 meters or longer on order around the world. The ten current builds among Nobiskrug, CMN, and Abu Dhabi MAR represent a significant portion of the global order book.

Mountain View Apartments

Luxury apartments are still declining in value and the sensible option seems to be renting as opposed to buying currently. No one is going to argue that it is not a renters market at the moment. So, for anyone considering renting a luxury apartment in California, these Mountain View apartments stand out as an exceptional bargain.

The Avalon Towers on the Peninsula, CA apartments are fitted out in the latest luxury accessories: with ceramic bathroom floors, genuine granite counter tops,, real Maple wood cabinet fittings; central air-con, fully equipped gourmet kitchens and stunning mountain views. The building is pre-wired for high speed Internet, is Advanced Telecom-ready, and is pre-wired for satellite and cable television.

The management company concerned states, “we've created a selection of amenities so integrated into our community that we consider them to be "Essential Luxuries."’ And their pedigree certainly backs this statement up. Careful consideration was given to the location, with the intention of making these luxury apartments as environmentally friendly as possible. Walkscore.com gives the location a 74/100 – “very walkable,” meaning many basic amenities are within an easy walk, including a Whole foods market, coffee shops,  employment hubs and public transport facilities.

The luxury aspect includes a concierge service, a state-of-the-art fitness center; a fully equipped business center with multiple phone lines and an outdoor swimming pool with sundeck.  Considering prices start from as little as $2000 per month, this represents exceptional value for money, and the company has spent substantial resources developing a strong business ethic based around “enhancing the lives of our residents,” which includes a number of resources to make any move as stress-free as possible, demonstrating Avalon’s commitment to personal attention,

Avalon Towers on the peninsula is situated at 2400 West El Camino Real Mountain View, CA 9404, within easy reach of highways 101, 85 and 280. Telephone number – 866-429-3310

I was lucky enough to see “A” up close and personal recently and she is spectacular. I won’t say I like the design because it is so odd, but spectacular aptly describes her and it certainly grows on you.

You could hear the sound of penises shrinking from as far away as San Remo when “A” dropped anchor in the bay of Cannes recently. You could hear the sound of Billionaire’s  accountants calculating the cost of building a more spectacular boat about thirty seconds later. More photos of luxury yacht "A"

The Maltese Falcon

It was built after the dynaship concept, a 1960s invention of the German hydraulics engineer Wilhelm Prölss, which was intended to operate commercial freight sailing ships with as few crew as possible. The ship has fifteen square sails (five per mast), stored inside the mast; they can fully unfurl into tracks along the yards in six minutes. The three carbon fiber masts, which are free-standing and able to rotate, were manufactured and assembled by a company financed by Perkins at the Perini Navi Istanbul "Yildiz Gemi" (literally: Star Ship) yard in Tuzla, 50 mi (80 km) east of Istanbul, Turkey, under the supervision of the English company Insensys and Dutch company Gerard Dijkstra & Partners. Other design was provided by Ken Freivokh Design. The Maltese Falcon was the third yacht built by Perini for Perkins.

The yacht is easily controlled and has been seen to sail off her anchor and away from berths within harbors. The yacht's sophisticated computer detects parameters such as wind speed automatically and displays key data. An operator must always activate the controls, yet it is possible for a single person to pilot the yacht. In a radio interview for the BBC World Service's Global Business programme broadcast in December 2007, Perkins revealed that he personally wrote some of the yacht's unique control software.

The Maltese Falcon has two 1,800 horse-power Deutz engines running at 1,800 rpm with a top speed of 20 kn (23 mph; 37 km/h) with minimal wave-making and virtually no vibration or noise and with a smooth and non-turbulent wake.

The yacht has a permanent crew of 18 to maintain the technical aspects, including the rig and to operate the onboard "hotel", which can accommodate twelve guests plus four guest staff. The boat also includes an onboard gourmet chef and stewards and stewardesses.

The Maltese Falcon was registered in Valletta, Malta in 2006. It completed its trial sail in the Sea of Marmara to the Bosphorus strait on June 12, 2006, and made its maiden voyage from Turkey to Italy via Malta in July 2006. Since that time, Perkins has been renting out The Maltese Falcon for between €325,000 to €335,000 per week, plus expenses.

Lusso Magazine ran a cover feature on The Maltese Falcon in their January 2008 edition, where they reported that yacht brokers Edmiston and Company were the first to set up a charter — for "a piffling €350,000 per week. This price includes a crew of 16, but you still have to pay for food and wine".

In a 60 Minutes profile on November 4, 2007, Perkins suggested the yacht cost more than $150 million, but less than $300 million, refusing to be more specific.

This boat is currently for sale if anyone is interested.