The Dutch will have to dismantle a historic bridge to allow Jeff Bezos’ new megayacht to pass. Jeff Bezos’ new yacht is enormous. It won’t be able to sail out to sea unless a Dutch city demolishes a historic bridge.
The 417-foot vessel is currently building in Alblasserdam, Netherlands, according to Dutch broadcaster Rijnmond. Once completed, it will need to pass via Rotterdam. Rotterdam is widely regarded as Europe’s maritime capital, to reach the ocean.
The only issue is that the megayacht has three masts. They are too big to pass beneath the Koningshaven Bridge in Rotterdam, despite its 131-foot clearance.
The bridge, known as De Hef by locals, is almost 100 years old. While it no longer serves as a train crossing, it has become a city monument. It was renovated and then reassembled in 2017. After that, the city vowed they would not dismantle it again, according to Rijnmond.
However, the city is considering removing the bridge’s center section to allow the vessel to sail through.
Frances van Heijst, a spokesman for the city of Rotterdam, confirmed to Insider that the city can offer permission to the marine industry to take a ship to sea. However, van Heijst told the Washington Post on Wednesday that the city will not cover the expense of disassembling and reassembling the bridge; Oceanco, the shipbuilder, will.
Jeff Bezos’ new yacht: “One of the finest sailing yachts in existence”
Oceanco’s representative did not answer to Insider’s request for comment right away.
Last May, Brad Stone’s book “Amazon Unbound” revealed the existence of Bezos’ megayacht. According to Stone, the custom yacht’s current name is Y721. It has projections to cost $500 million and will be “one of the finest sailing yachts in existence.”
In addition to the gigantic yacht, the Amazon founder — who is presently worth $176 billion — reportedly has ordered a smaller “support yacht” with its helipad.
New photographs and videos of what looked to be the yacht rolling out of a shipyard in Zwijndrecht, Netherlands, surfaced in October. Although the gigantic vessel was still under construction, images published by Boat International and the Daily Mail revealed a ship with a black hull and numerous decks.
According to Boat International, the project will complete in 2022 and will be the world’s largest sailing yacht.