Amels delivers its first hybrid superyacht

Netherlands-based shipyard Amels has delivered Volpini 2, the first hull in its Limited Editions 188 series and its first ‘hybrid superyacht’.

Launched in April 2018, the 57.7-metre (189-foot) displacement yacht is now making her way to the Mediterranean after being delivered at Amels’ Dutch yard. She was sold in 2017 to a repeat Amels client – with SYM Superyacht Management’s Ben Young acting as owner’s representative during the build phase.

Commenting on the process, Young said, “Amels listened carefully to what was important to the clients in the final stages of construction and delivered on time and on budget. The entire Amels team were a real pleasure to work alongside with each and every person getting behind the project to deliver. It is not often that shipyards truly put their clients first, however Amels absolutely did."

Exterior styling on Volpini 2 is by Tim Heywood with interiors courtesy of Reymond Langton Design Studio.

The LE188 – the eighth model in the Limited Editions series – boasts a 10.6-metre beam allowing for a generous interior area totalling 970GT. Volpini 2 also features four decks and has space for up to 12 guests across six cabins. Crew quarters are large enough for up to 13 staff.

Of Volpini 2’s hybrid specifications, Amels design manager Hans Konings explained, “We’re very proud of the technology innovations that have gone into her design, the culmination of our Amels 188 Research and Development programme, which we started in 2014.”

The hybrid-powered superyacht makes use of Amels’ hybrid switchboard and waste heat recovery systems. The system combines energy sources from engine heat recovery, a battery bank and a father-and-son generator configuration to “increase efficiency and reduce harmful emissions”, according to the yard.

As well as being Amels' first hybrid-powered new build, Volpini 2 is also the world’s first Tier III-compliant new build. The International Maritime Organisation’s Tier III emissions regulations require motor yachts weighing over 500GT with a global cruising range, and with a keel laid after 1^st January 2016, to limit toxic NOX emissions in engine exhaust fumes by roughly 70%.

Volpini 2 features a top speed of 15.5 knots, and – at a speed of 13 knots – a transatlantic cruising range of 4,500 nautical miles.

For more information, visit Amels.