One hundred marine drones and 87 satellites Prytula: how much are the confiscated yachts of the Russian Federation worth

USM analyzed how much all the confiscated yachts of Russians and collaborators are worth — and what they can be bought for.
Right from the beginning of the full-scale invasion of Russia into Ukraine, the question of compensation for the losses arose. The confiscation of the assets of supporters of rashism became an effective tool for collecting reparations. In particular, the property of Russian oligarchs was given away.
Thus, Ukraine, together with its allies, confiscated only yachts worth $1.4 billion from the Russians. USM calculated the value of the confiscated “toys” of Russian billionaires and will show what Ukraine can buy for it.

Part 1. Russian modesty

Opening the “hit parade” of arrested Russian yachts is “cheap” by the standards of Putin’s friends, but a pleasant loss. In April 2022, Finnish law enforcement officers confiscated two motorboats worth $244,000. The owner of the watercraft was Boris Rotenberg, an oligarch close to the President of Russia.

The “Budgazmontazh” company of the oligarch Arkady Rotenberg, brother of Boris, built the notorious Crimean Bridge after the occupation of the peninsula by the Russian Federation.

In April, the European Union introduced personal sanctions against Boris Rotenberg. Earlier, the oligarch was subject to US sanctions.

But we’re not here for motorboats, so we jump right up to $17 million (and that’s just the beginning). The yacht “Lena” was arrested by Italian law enforcement officers on March 4, 2022. The yacht is designed for 10 guests, it has a sauna, a swimming pool, a jacuzzi, a gym and a cinema. The water craft belongs to the owner of the investment group “Volga Group” Gennadiy Timchenko.

The oligarch was Putin’s partner in the privatization of St. Petersburg enterprises in the 1990s. Subsequently, Tymchenko became a fictitious holder of shares of the President of the Russian Federation abroad, mainly in the oil and gas business.

Next on the list is the yacht “Lady M” worth $27 million. Like the previous vessel, this yacht was arrested by Italy in early March 2022. It belongs to the Russian billionaire Alexey Mordashov.

As of 2022, Mordashov was listed as the richest citizen of the Russian Federation — his fortune amounted to $19.7 billion. It is reported that the oligarch paid for a number of Putin’s projects and generously financed his close associates.

The next confiscated Russian vessel is the superyacht “Phi”. Its value is estimated at $48.22 million. The yacht was seized by the British government in March 2022.

The former owner of the ship is a businessman from the Russian Federation Sergey Naumenko. The Russian himself actively denies his ties to Putin and is even trying to sue the British authorities over “illegal” confiscation of property. However, it did not help him. Then-Transport Minister Grant Shapps announced that the seizure of the vessel “turned an icon of Russian power and wealth into a clear and stark warning to Putin and his cronies.”

Next in the “average price category” of confiscated watercraft of Russian oligarchs is the yacht “La Petite Ourse II”, owned by Putin oligarch Alexey Kuzmichev. The yacht was confiscated by the French police in 2022. Its value is estimated at $49 million.

The Roman “two” in the name is used for a reason: the sister ship of this vessel –“ La Petite Ourse”  – was able to avoid arrest, the owner even received compensation for “inconvenience” in the amount of $10.85 thousand. And all because of procedural errors made during the arrest of the vessel.

Alexey Kuzmichev is a co-founder of investment companies “LetterOne Group” and “Alfa Group”. In March 2022, Kuzmychev was added to the EU sanctions list. Already on October 30, 2023, the French police detained Kuzmichev and searched his Paris mansion and his villa in Saint-Tropez. Kuzmichev is suspected of tax crimes and violation of sanctions.

Next comes the superyacht “Axioma” worth $75 million. The former owner of the vessel is oligarch Dmitry Pumpyansky. The yacht was seized in Gibraltar and soon sold for only $37.5 million.

Dmitry Pumpyansky was the owner and chairman of the board of JSC TMK, a Russian manufacturer of steel pipes for the oil and gas industry. As of August 2022, the fortune of the oligarch was estimated at 2 billion dollars. Due to the support of Russian aggression against Ukraine, it is under personal international sanctions of the EU, the USA and a number of other states.

Chapter 2. Intrigues, machinations and Medvedchuk

The story of the confiscation of the Tango superyacht worth $90 million is reminiscent of either a thriller or a comedy. The owner of the yacht is Russian oligarch Viktor Vekselberg, who has been under US sanctions since 2018. With the beginning of a full-scale invasion, the ship, at the request of the United States, was arrested in Spain.

The Russian did not think long and simply renamed Tango to Fanta. And thanks to a complex financial scheme, he tried to get the yacht out of sanctions. Betrayal came from nowhere. The fact is that Vekselberg ordered 58 luxury robes with the logo of the Tango yacht from the American company, but indicated in the invoices for payment a new false name of his vessel. After all, the deception was quickly exposed. Yes, self-confidence and, pardon the pun, negligence deprived the yacht of another sponsor of the Russian regime.

Viktor Vekselberg — carries out commercial activities in sectors of the economy that provide a significant source of income for the Russian government. Due to the financing of the Putin regime, the oligarch is under sanctions from Great Britain and the United States. Moreover, the billionaire is suspected of meddling in the 2016 US presidential election.

No less dynamic is the history of the “Alfa Nero” yacht worth $120 million. The vessel belonged to the Russian oligarch Andriy Guriev. Since February 2022, the vessel has been abandoned in the port of Antigua and Barbuda. For a long time, the local government could not decide what to do with the “forgotten” yacht, and after a year of idleness, it was put up for auction.

The confiscated vessel was purchased by a new owner for $67.6 million, until suddenly the daughter of a Russian oligarch “appeared” and started suing the buyer. As a result, the new owner refused to buy a Russian yacht — away from sin. The vessel now remains in Antigua and Barbuda under the watchful eye of the police and humbly awaits a new auction.

Andrey Guriev is a Russian billionaire, the former general director of the chemical company “PhosAgro” and a henchman of Putin. Due to Russia’s invasion of Ukraine, a number of countries are under personal international sanctions.

Another yacht worth $120 million was confiscated by the French government. The “Amore Vero” vessel belongs to Rosneft President Ihor Sechin. The 86-meter-long yacht is designed for 14 passengers, it has a gym, spa area, jacuzzi, elevator and swimming pool.

According to Forbes, since 2009, Sechin is the second most influential person in Russia after Putin. In March 2014, Sechin was added to the list of specially designated citizens and blocked persons of the United States due to his role in destabilizing the situation in Ukraine. In March 2022, Great Britain froze all personal assets of the oligarch in the country. From October 19, 2022, Sechyn was added to Ukraine’s sanctions list.

Well, where can we go without Ukrainian traitors. Who would have thought that one of the five most luxurious private yachts in the world belonged to the former Ukrainian People’s Deputy and Putin’s friend Viktor Medvedchuk. The elite yacht “Royal Romance” was blocked in March 2022 in Croatia. Now the cost of the 92-meter vessel is estimated at about $217 million.

Prior to the introduction of NSDC sanctions, the Royal Romance yacht changed its formal owner. Initially, it was owned by “Fregata Marine Ltd”, a company registered in the Marshall Islands, whose ultimate beneficiary was Medvedchuk’s wife, Oksana Marchenko. However, in March 2022, the vessel was quickly re-registered as Lanelia Holdings Ltd, also from the Marshall Islands. Unlike Fregata Marine Ltd, Medvedchuk did not officially declare this company.

However, this did not help to avoid confiscation. At the end of January 2024, the District Court of the city of Split (Croatia) decided to transfer the Royal Romance yacht to Ukraine. And already on February 16, the government of Ukraine agreed to ARMA’s proposal for the sale of the “Royal Romance” yacht.

As a reminder, Viktor Medvedchuk is a former Ukrainian pro-Russian politician and businessman with close ties to Russian President Putin. In Ukraine, the oligarch is accused of treason, Ukrainophobic views, as well as non-declaration of assets.

And now we have come to a true example of Russian gigantomania. In March 2022, Italy arrested Russian oligarch Andrei Melnichenko’s yacht named “A”. The cost of the ship is estimated at $600 million (approximately 9 Caesar Kunikov ships)

The length of the yacht is 143 meters, and the height of the masts reaches about one hundred meters. The ship is considered the world’s largest sailing yacht.

Andrei Melnychenko is the most active private investor in the non-raw materials sector of Russian industry. The oligarch is the main beneficiary of the international fertilizer producer Eurochem and the coal and energy company SUEK. After the start of the full-scale invasion, the businessman is under sanctions from many countries around the world.

Part 3. What can be purchased with funds from confiscated yachts

If you were thinking about whether Medvedchuk’s yacht can be hit on the Crimean Bridge, so are we. The editors of USM converted the value of confiscated assets of Russian oligarchs into useful equipment for the Armed Forces (and not only).

So, the total value of Russian yachts is approximately $1.363 billion, which is:

• Five Marshall Islands GDP ($260 million);

• Russian yachts can be exchanged for more than 160 Bayraktars. On average, 6 such drones and related equipment cost $50 million;

• Also for this amount you can rent “Prytula satellites” for 87 years (one access per year costs UAH 600 million — or $15,759);

The most pleasant thing, in our opinion, will be to exchange Russian yachts for more than 150 Sea Baby marine drones (70 drones cost the same $15,759). This number looks especially pleasant, if you consider that there are only about 30 ships left in the Black Sea Fleet of the Russian Federation.

And in general, you can buy more FPV drones for confiscated Russian yachts than the entire army of the Russian Federation on the territory of Ukraine – if you consider that one drone costs $1 thousand.

However, while the Ukrainian government is coordinating with its partners the process of confiscation of Russian assets, we should not forget to inform Ukrainian Armed Forces. Despite the interesting calculations, the funds will probably go to the restoration of our state after the victory. There is still a lot of work to be done, and for now the fate of Ukraine rests with the Armed Forces. And we must do everything possible to help our military eradicate the racist scourge once and for all.

Danyil Popov