The Italian Sea Group, the parent company to four superyacht brands, has confirmed the successful acquisition of Perini Navi for €80million at the latest auction in Viareggio. Following two failed auctions, Perini Navi was finally sold at the third time of asking.

“I am extremely proud of this operation. We wanted to go further with the investment, but we arrived at the auction with the absolute determination of wanting to acquire all the assets based on our consolidated, expertise and new contracts, especially in the segment of large sailing yachts,” comments Giovanni Constantino, founder and CEO of The Italian Sea Group.

Following its declaration of bankruptcy in January 2021, Perini Navi had been offered for sale at auction twice unsuccessfully, with reports from various interested parties, including Palumbo Group, Sanlorenzo and Ferretti Group, expressly stating that they believed the original asking price of €62.5million to be too high. The same proved to be the case for the second auction and the reduced asking price of €56million.

There were questions raised by SuperyachtNews as to whether or not the public declarations pertaining to Perini Navi’s inflated price were legitimate or whether they were being used as a method to drive down the price. Indeed, even The Italian Sea Group announced that it presented an offer of €47million for the business, some €33million less than the eventual sales price, suggesting that all the public posturing and complaints were, in fact, the tool that SuperyachtNews had suggested it was. The acquisition will be financed by available cash, with significant funds having been raised through The Italian Sea Group's IPO, as well as opening up additional lines of credit with the banks.

“The new production spaces will allow us to expand incoming orders for the future in a very dynamic segment, as evidenced by the two recent orders relating to sailing yachts signed in December,” continues Constantino. “We are, therefore, confident that we have made the right choice, driven by an incoming order that exceeded forecasts by 50 per cent.”

It must be said that the timing of the acquisition is fortuitous with the superyacht industry going through a boom period of sales. The need for additional capacity, even amongst the world’s most renowned shipyards, has arguably never been greater. Through this acquisition The Italian Sea Group hopes to increase both its new build and refit capacity, as well as reviving the Perini brand itself, focussing on the development of large sailing yachts.

For an exploration of exactly how the new-build market has boomed over the last year, look out for the publication of The Superyacht New Build Report in 2022. 

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Perini Navi

The Italian Sea Group

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