US citizens pay $600,000 a month for the maintenance of a Russian superyacht

The US authorities have asked the court to allow the sale of the arrested superyacht of Russian billionaire Suleiman Kerimov. Its maintenance costs $600,000 per month.

The US Department of Justice has asked the court for permission to sell the superyacht “Amadea”, which probably belongs to Russian senator and billionaire Suleiman Kerimov, Bloomberg  reports.

The 106-meter yacht “Amadea”, worth $325 million, was seized in Fiji at the request of the United States in April 2022 under sanctions imposed after the war in Ukraine.

The US government claims that it pays $600,000 a month to maintain the yacht. This sum includes $360,000 for the crew, $75,000 for fuel for the yacht, and $165,000 for maintenance, garbage removal, and other expenses. According to the US government, taxpayers should not have to pay for the maintenance of the yacht while the court considers the question of its confiscation.

The court must decide who exactly is the owner of the yacht. According to the US authorities, the owner of the yacht is Suleyman Kerimov, who is under sanctions. At the same time, the former head of Rosneft, Eduard Khudainatov, who is not under sanctions, claims that the yacht belongs to him. As Bloomberg writes, the businessman promised to reimburse the $20 million spent on maintaining the yacht if it is returned.

As previously reported by USM, in April 2023, the Fijian police detained the yacht “Amadea” and its crew. Already in May, the Supreme Court of Fiji granted the request to arrest the yacht.

In October 2023, the prosecutor’s office of New York filed a lawsuit for the confiscation of the 106-meter superyacht “Amadea”, worth more than $300 million.