Yacht brokers of Hong Kong have had a phenomenal couple of years as the local appetite for superyachts has grown. There has been a boom in “demand for anything between 15-metres through to 45-metres, and around 500 yachts have been sold in Hong Kong in the last two years,” Eric Noyel, Founder of Asia Marine & Managing Director of Fraser Asia, told SYT. 
Photo: Florian Wehde / UnsplashWhile the appetite has predominantly been satisfied by European builds, local yacht builders have also been kept extremely busy. Kingship, for one, currently has multiple projects underway, Managing Director, Roger Liang confirmed. “We are currently building a 45-metre motor yacht designed by Horico Bozzo of Axis studio, and have just delivered a 24-metre catamaran to a buyer who’ll navigate around one of the largest lakes in Southern China.” Kingship built six steel displacement yachts, that are full class and adhere to MCA standards, in the last 10 years. The yard also delivered three high-speed catamaran to clients in Southern China.
Across the Taiwan Strait, Ocean Alexander and Horizon Yachts are churning out yachts with great tenacity, securing owners for each one. Last year Ocean Alexander delivered 13 yachts in the above 24-metre category and have a further 12 penned in to be launched this year. Whereas eight yachts built by Horizon made their first splash last year, and the Taiwanese builder expects to put another 15 in the water before this year’s through. The bulk of these yachts aren’t destined for Asia though, “Horizon Yachts’ main market is Australia, the States, and Europe” Suzy Rayment, Executive Director of the Asia-Pacific Superyacht Association, explained. The lower number of Asian sales compared to other regions was confirmed after a quick call to the European office of Horizon Yachts. The same is true for Ocean Alexander.
Photo: Drone Genius
Photo: Horizon Yachts“Shipyards in Taiwan and Mainland China have been exporting yachts around the world for many years and there is now a growing market in mainland China for locally built yachts,” Mike Simpson, Founder & CEO of Simpson Marine, commented. “Local builders are learning fast from their more established western counterparts and the quality is improving, but Asian buyers have come to expect cutting edge design, innovation and build quality – and throughout Asia they generally prefer to buy yachts from more established western shipyards. The ‘Designer Label’ is as important for yacht buyers as it is for buyers of cars, watches or handbags.”
Photo: Jinlong Mega YachtJinlong Mega Yacht is one such shipyard that is developing quickly. The yacht builder is owned by the conglomerate that recently acquired Balk Shipyard, Zhongying Int’l Holding Group Ltd. The Dutch shipyard will soon be working closely with Jinlong Mega Yachts, as the Chinese shipyard rolls out its expansion plans. Daan Balk confirmed this when the initial announcement was made, stating that his team will support the training activities at Jinlong Mega Yacht.
European or American-built yachts are more than just a status symbol for many though. Quality is one thing, but “there also isn’t the same level of aftercare with Chinese-built boats,” Rayment said. So while these yachts might be cheaper, they still come with a price: a lower guarantee that clients know and expect from superyacht manufacturers. This may not be the case for long though; it seems we’re at a pivotal turning point.
The forthcoming developments at Jinlong Mega Yachts, for one, but also with headway being made at Heysea Yachts. “Heysea was established in 2007 and is currently the leading shipbuilder in mainland China,” Godfrey Zwygart, Managing Director at Marevisio Co. Limited, said. “They have a whole range of boats up to 43 metres, and their quality has been improving considerably in recent years – they are a serious competitor to western shipyards.” 
Photo: Charl van Rooy / SuperYacht Times
Photo: David Churchill, George Guest and Timothy SaundersThe other big player in China is Pride Mega Yachts, located in the Yantai Shandong province. Pride is the yard that handled the construction of one of the largest Chinese-built superyachts: the 88.5-metre motor yacht Illusion Plus. Currently all three shipyards are predominantly geared for export, they all have scope to expand their facilities if local demand grows – which it could.
“China is completely closed off from Hong Kong at the moment, but this could change as Hong Kong is now part of the Greater Bay Area,” Reyment said. “The yachting infrastructure is waiting to happen in China – it’s just not there yet. Hong Kong is a great role model in that respect.”
Photo: David Churchill, George Guest and Timothy Saunders“Hong Kong has been doing well with superyacht sales these last few years and has had a fair bit of success with the 40-45-metre category,” Joe Yuen, Chief Representative, Hong Kong and Macao at Burgess, told SYT. “It’s been a slightly different story in the mainland and the market for imported superyachts is a lot slower. There is a demand for locally built superyachts, production boats and smaller yachts in the region, but not for those imported.”
Yuen continued, “A lot of local owners want superyachts, but because of local restrictions there is a reduced appetite for larger pleasure vessels. We see a lot of smaller Chinese-built yachts going out fishing and day cruising around Southern China, but larger yachts aren’t a common sight.”
Tax and flagging regulations are two issues. While there may be much lower tax imposed if an owner wants to fly a Chinese flag, it comes with restrictions. “Local yachts with a Chinese flag have limited access to domestic waters and need to apply for special permits to go abroad, so boats willing to sail globally would have to be registered as commercial,” Zwygart explained. 
This explains the strong focus on export. It also provided an opportunity for other Asian shipyards to tap into the market. South Korean builder GHI Super Yachts "Phoenix Model Yachts", for one, supplies superyachts to its Chinese clients with an availability of flags and without an export tax. The largest yacht currently in-build at its facilities is the 39.6-metre motor yacht Legacy 135.
Amidst heavy restrictions, there’s a lot of potentials. The market is maturing but the infrastructure needs developing and legislation needs lifting. There's also an issue with limited berthing available. Nonetheless, Roger Liang reports a growing number of “yachts on Hainan Island,” while this is positive the numbers “will take time to catch up” with the numbers of other affluent countries. If legislation is passed, there could be an upsurge – but, really, it’s difficult to tell.