Luxury superyacht a world first for seafaring in style

Richard Beattie is a very rich man - and he wanted to spend money.

So he developed an idea, came to New Zealand and spent $58 million building one of the world's biggest and most expensive motoryachts.

The Hong Kong-based multi-millionaire named it Big Fish, and the 45m-long vessel is sitting in all its glory at Auckland's Viaduct Harbour.

"I've always been fascinated by boats," he said aboard the luxury craft this week.

"My previous boat I had in the Philippines was so inadequate. I wanted something to go to remote places, to places boats like this have not gone before.

"I thought, I've got to have a boat that can, and here we are, three years later."

Beattie, his crew and their families celebrated the launch of Big Fish in style last weekend.

There was entertainment from Opshop's Jason Kerrison and Dancing with the Stars co-host Candy Lane's dance company, with TV star Brooke Howard-Smith performing MC duties while guests quaffed champagne.

This week it was back to business, with the crew preparing for the maiden voyage, and luxury boatbuilders McMullen & Wing working on the finishing touches.

That journey will be a circumnavigation scheduled for mid-June and taking in everywhere from the Antarctic to the Amazon.

Beattie has made it available for charter at key points on the journey.

Passengers will travel in incredible comfort, with the boat boasting what are believed to be several nautical "firsts".

It can circle the globe with a single refuelling stop, thanks to state-of-the-art technology. Even the heat from the engine and generators is recycled to provide hot water.

It also has a video wall, made of 30 screens that cover all four floors and can play three movies at once.

Beattie, chief executive of global retail marketing company The Continuity Company, says the only other one like it is at the White House in Washington.

And instead of teak, the decks are made of granite.

"So you can wear your heels," said Beattie.

"That's what we want the motto to be: 'Please wear your stilettos on Big Fish,' or 'Bring your Jimmy Choos'."

The boat also features $1million worth of glass in its floor-to-ceiling windows, $3000 sheets on each bed in its five bedrooms, a helicopter landing pad, spa pool, two terraces, a wine cellar, two barbecues and a state-of-the art kitchen.

The stern also features fold-down "beaches", which create a 11m platform.

It's less of a boat, said Beattie, and more of a luxury SUV of the sea. Although initially designed for personal use, Beattie has decided Big Fish would be the first of many unique motoryachts for his new company, Aquos Yachts.

Jim Gilbert of Aquos Yachts said they had signed a second deal with McMullen & Wing for a 50m craft named Star Fish.

He said Big Fish was built with a "Kiwi can-do attitude".

Bid to keep brand afloat

Efforts are being made to save the name of another luxury Auckland boatbuilding company, despite its collapse.

The brand, name and designs of Salthouse Marine have been offered for sale by international tender, closing on July 9.

Salthouse Marine Ltd was placed in liquidation this week. It went into receivership owing more than $10 million.

The receiver says potential breaches of the Companies Act will be reported to authorities.