Sanctioned Russian Oligarch’s $500M Superyacht Leaves Hong Kong for Cape Town

(Reuters) — A luxury super yacht belonging to sanctioned Russian oligarch Alexey Mordashov left Hong Kong waters on Thursday bound for the South African port of Cape Town, according to private tracking site MarineTraffic.

The prominent sight of the 141-meter-long, multi-deck yacht Nord in the city’s Victoria Harbor in recent weeks has drawn criticism from the US State Department, which has questioned the “transparency” of the financial hub and warned of reputation risks.

Mordashov, a billionaire close to President Vladimir Putin, was among several Russians sanctioned by the United States and the European Union, but not the United Nations, after Russia’s invasion of Ukraine for their ties to Putin.

While a number of Russian superyachts have been seized or denied entry into Europe and other jurisdictions, the Nord was left undisturbed in Hong Kong after its arrival on October 5.

Valued at more than $500 million, the yacht arrived via a seven-day voyage from Vladivostok in the Russian Far East, via the Sea of ​​Japan and East China Sea.

The Hong Kong Marine Department later confirmed that the Nord had left Hong Kong on Thursday, but said it could not comment further.

The MarineTraffic site placed the ship southeast of Hong Kong waters on Thursday night, heading for the South China Sea.

A witness saw a fuel barge next to the vessel inside the port at noon.

Hong Kong leader John Lee said on Oct. 11 that city authorities would not act on unilateral sanctions imposed on Mordashov by individual jurisdictions.

“We can’t do anything that doesn’t have a legal basis,” said Lee, who has been sanctioned by the United States for his role in cracking down on local freedoms.

Lee, who will host an international investment summit with world business leaders in November, said the Chinese-ruled city would only comply with United Nations sanctions.