Privil¨ge Marine sold

Privil¨ge Marine sold

Major contract for Dutch builder

Germanys HanseYachts acquires French catamaran builder for undisclosed sum

Germanys HanseYachts today announced that its parent company, Aurelius, has acquired French catamaran builder Privil¨ge Marine for an undisclosed sum.

Privil¨ge will continue to exist as an independent brand and the shipyard in Les Sables-d’Olonne, France, will be maintained and expanded.

According to a company statement, the aim is to combine Hanses expertise in series yacht production with the catamaran-building experience of Privil¨ge in order to make the Privil¨ge brand one of the worlds most successful luxury catamaran brands.

Privil¨ge builds premium catamarans from 12m-23m, and has sold more than 800 units since the company was founded in 1985.

With the acquisition, HanseYachts will now market seven world-renowned sail and motorboat brands going forward Hanse, Moody, Dehler and Varianta sailing yachts, Fjord and Sealine motoryachts, and Privil¨ge catamarans.

Privil¨ge and HanseYachts have the same concept when it comes to building boats, says the statement. Both companies build premium-segment owner yachts that are sporty, luxurious and, above all else, particularly seaworthy.

Gert Purkert, executive board member at Aurelius, says: “The high-margin catamaran market has seen particularly strong growth in the past years. HanseYachts has not been able to share in this development so far, because it was not even possible to manufacture yachts of this breadth in the existing production facilities.

“In recent weeks, we have analysed the shipyard and the products of Privil¨ge in detail and have found that the philosophy and products of Privil¨ge are a good fit for us and for our corporate culture. The popular and well-known Privil¨ge brand will complement the HanseYachts portfolio perfectly.

“The HanseYachts production site in Greifswald is also expected to take over some building processes in the future. For example, we will examine whether some of the Privil¨ge preliminary products that so far had to be purchased can be manufactured here.

With the exception of CEO Gilles Wagner, who will remain in office, all previous Privil¨ge owners have sold their shares in the company. “Our remit is to build luxury catamarans that are especially sturdy, Wagner says. Just like HanseYachts, we place a special emphasis on longevity, craftsmanship, design and simple handling for all of the yachts from our shipyard.

“The production methods of Privil¨ge and HanseYachts are also very similar. In addition, HanseYachts is much larger than Privil¨ge and has a global presence. As a result, we and our clients will benefit especially from the strong, worldwide network of sales and service points. Consequently we are very much looking forward to working together with HanseYachts.

HanseYachts is Germanys second-biggest boatbuilder after Bavaria and the third-biggest builder of sailing yachts worldwide. The companys product portfolio stretches from 29ft-60ft in length.

All yachts currently being built by Privil¨ge will be handed over to their owners as planned, says Hanse, and all current models will continue to be available for order.