Imported still preferred - Serbian Shipyards rarely receive orders for yachts

(Filip Zepter's yacht)

"A person who has EUR 90,000 will buy an apartment in Belgrade, whereas the one who has both an apartment in the capital city and EUR 90,000 will certainly buy a yacht abroad," a domestic manufacturer of ships and boats says through a smile. This summer again, owners of luxury vessels will show off around the world. While domestic and foreign wealthy men were recently promoting their top luxury yachts at the Adriatic Sea, some of which are worth up to EUR 340 million, eKapija was doing a survey about the reputation of yachts made in Serbia.

The lack of domestic buyers is not a problem for Begej Shipyard since this company builds yachts for a foreign client. After a test drive on the Danube, Begej's luxury yacht Sharq-Explorer sailed away to the Netherlands last week. Its dimensions are 23.85X5m, it is 3.75m high, while its maximum speed is 8.5 knots.

(Sharq-Explorer, built by Begej Shipyard)

This is the second yacht built by this shipyard, and it is modeled after the first one. As people at the Zrenjanin-based shipyard explained, this vessel is designed to meet the requirements of a house and an office on the water, and it has excellent sailing characteristics. In spite of its size, it is very easy to maneuver.

- Large deck windows, afterdeck, parlor and balcony on the upper part of the deck are designed to provide maximum comfort. There are also two rooms with a bathroom on the bottom floor - said people at Begej.

All products of Begej Shipyard are made for the Netherlands market. Mercurius group is responsible for finding jobs in the Netherlands and delivering ready-made products from Serbia to end-buyers.

(the interior of Sharq-Explorer)

The prices of yachts like Sharq- Explorer range from 75,000 to 1,200,000 euros, depending on the interior and accompanying equipment.

People at Tri Princeze Shipyard in the vicinity of Novi Sad say that the most expensive yacht they built cost about EUR 60,000. It was sold to a private entity in Serbia.

- Aquarius 320 is a river crusader for cruises lasting for several days and it completely meets the user's expectations in terms of navigability, easy maneuvering, safety and comfort. With its length of 9.6 meters and width of 2.45 meters, cabin, living room and balcony, it guarantees moments of pleasure during the whole season, regardless of weather.

The most expensive yacht built in Plavi Horizonti Shipyard from the namesake settlement in Zemun cost about EUR 65,000. As people at that shipyard explained for eKapija, the yacht was named Plavi Horizonti after the company, it is 15 meters long, and it was built for "a gentleman from New Belgrade".

(Aquarius 320, built by Tri Princeze Shipyard)

The ship builder Premix from Titel does not have yachts in its product portfolio, but it can offer Panonka boat, which is perfect for spending several days at a river, lake, or a sea. It is 7.7 meters long, 2.6 meters wide, 2.8 meters high, and weighs 1 tonne.

Milan Kosovac, director of Premix, says for eKapija that Serbia does not have the market for yachts because their purchase price is small and those who have money buy yachts abroad.

- It is expensive to the start the production of yachts, and even if we decide to do that, it will be very difficult to find buyers for such yachts - says Kosovac.