According to The Wall Street Journal, the small Caribbean nation’s taxpayers are footing a $28,000 monthly tab to keep a 270-foot megayacht that the government of Antigua and Barbuda confiscated.
A $120 million ship called Alfa Nero, abandoned for six months at Antigua’s Falmouth Harbor after Russia’s invasion of Ukraine, was seized by armed police and the FBI in August 2022.
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The Alfa Nero has been associated with Andrey Guryev, a Russian tycoon whom the US Treasury Department describes as a close acquaintance of Vladimir Putin. He established a fertilizer business, and the Bloomberg Billionaires Index estimates that he is worth $9 billion.
According to a government minister from Antigua and Barbuda, the Alfa Nero was scheduled for sale in March due to improper maintenance, which could make it a “hazard.”
The boat auction was won by Eric Schmidt, the former CEO of Google, for $67.6 million in June. But according to The Journal, he changed his mind after a business connected to Guryev’s daughter launched a last-minute lawsuit to halt the transaction.
The megayacht has been docked in Falmouth Harbor for 19 months. It features an infinity pool that can transform into a dance floor, but for the 93,000-person Caribbean nation, it has become a burden.
As reported by The Journal, citizens of the country are currently paying $28,000 in taxes each week to fund the maintenance of the Alfa Nero. This amount includes the salary of an Italian captain and a daily cost of $2,000 for diesel to power the ship’s air conditioning. This is necessary to prevent mildew growth and protect the hardwood interior and the Joan Miró artwork on board, as turning off the AC could cause damage.
You take $1,000 bills, tear them up, and just keep going, the marina’s dock master Tom Paterson told the Journal.
It was unable to get in touch with the Antigua and Barbuda authorities right away for comment.
