Sold to Chittagong Breakers
News
ANDROS KING
The Greek shipping company Golden Star Ferries on July 24, 2024,has officially announced the purchase of the 'Volcán de Taburiente' from Naviera Armas which, it was inspecting in person in La Palma last February. The Greek shipping company, in a press release issued this day, announced: "Golden Star Ferries, within the framework of reliability, responsibility and evolution, is pleased to announce the purchase, with equal funds, of F/B Volcán de Taburiente ( ...). Our new acquisition will be one of the newest and most modern ships operating in the Greek seas and will mark the beginning of a new phase of development, making Golden Star Ferries a landmark in Greece. At the same time, it will contribute to further developing the group of islands that will be activated, improving their transportation needs and serving local communities. The ship will leave for Greece in September to operate in the Aegean Sea, although first it will have to undergo a remodeling to comply with Greek regulations, and will be renamed 'Golden Star'.
ANDROS KING
The “Volcán de Taburiente” will be handed over from the Armas Trasmediterránea Group to the Greek company Golden Star Ferries Shipping on Sept 17. The price of the operation has not been disclosed, but will be between 20 and 30 million Euros, at most. The crew will be relocated to other ships of the company. The ship was sold for several reasons, including some of a technical and financial nature, such as the cost that would be involved in updating it to the new environmental requirements, given that it lacks scrubbers.
ROYAL ROMANCE
A Croatian court has canceled the seizure of the 'Royal Romance' of Viktor Medvedchuk's collaborator due to the lack of an indictment in a criminal case from the Office of the Prosecutor General of Ukraine. This decision threatened to lose an asset worth $200 million , which could significantly support the Ukrainian budget and army. On June 25, the District Court of Split ruled to cancel the arrest of traitor Viktor Medvedchuk's yacht. The decision stated that the reason for the arrest was the absence of an indictment in a criminal case from the Office of the Prosecutor General . In April 2022, the Split District Court seized Medvedchuk's property at the request of the Office of the Prosecutor General of Ukraine. The seizure was extended six times , but in May 2024, the selected auction house, which was supposed to sell the asset, refused to make a deal due to the work of Medvedchuk's lawyers from the international law firm Steptoe . Delays in the investigation of criminal proceedings against Medvedchuk led to the fact that the arrest of the yacht was canceled . The absence of an indictment was the key reason for this decision. Thus, ARMA cannot enforce national court decisions to sell the vessel, and Ukraine risks losing this expensive asset. The yacht is valued at $200 million. The Asset Recovery and Management Agency (ARMA) put up for sale the seized ATVs of collaborator Viktor Medvedchuk and contraband electronics, including smartphones and tablets, on the Prozorro.Sale platform. The acquisition of these assets will bring significant financial revenues to the state and contribute to the development of the economy. PGO: Medvedchuk's yacht in Croatia seized indefinitely However, the yacht remains under indefinite seizure in line with EU sanctions, the Prosecutor General's Office (PGO) emphasizes under two proceedings against the former MP, in which the specified person has the status of a suspect or accused. The prosecutors from the Prosecutor General's Office, together with the Ministry of Foreign Affairs, continued to take measures to confiscate and sell the ship. Since 2022, the court has been considering an indictment on the facts of high treason and violation of the laws and customs of war by the former MP. In another proceeding - on the facts of assistance to the activities of terrorist organizations "L/DPR" - a pretrial investigation has been completed. Through the joint efforts of the PGO, the Ministry of Foreign Affairs and thanks to the evidence base collected by the SBU and the SBI, the EU institutions and authorized persons were provided with the information necessary to make a decision on imposing sanctions on the assets of the former MP, including the yacht Royal Romance. As a result, on May 27, the European Union imposed personal sanctions against the suspect and his wife. The 'Royal Romance' is currently under seizure on the basis of indefinite sanctions in the port of Trogir and cannot leave the EU territory. Joint work continues with the Ukrainian Ministry of Foreign Affairs and international partners to develop a mechanism for its confiscation and sale.