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The Heesen Yachts shipyard in the Netherlands, which specializes in building luxury yachts for oligarchs and belonged to the Russian oil magnate of Azerbaijani origin, the head of the Lukoil company Vagit Alekperov, was recently sold.

The amount of the transaction was not specified.

Alekperov owned the shipyard through his Cypriot holding company Morcell Ltd
The new owner of the facility is 57-year-old Dutch businessman and billionaire Lawrence Last, who was previously involved in the production of shampoos and hair dyes. Last’s personal fortune is estimated at 1.7 billion dollars.

Vagit Alekperov acquired the shipyard in 2008, but in 2022, after the start of a full-scale war between Russia and Ukraine and the introduction of sanctions against Russian oligarchs, he was forced to put it up for sale.

According to Western media, Heesen Yachts has built over 200 yachts for billionaires and oligarchs, including Vagit Alekperov’s own yacht, the Galactica Super Nova.

According to corporate records in Cyprus, Alekperov owned the shipyard through his Cyprus holding company Morcell Ltd, which was owned by another Cyprus firm, Vela Investments Limited, previously registered in the British Virgin Islands.

Heesen Yachts has built over 200 yachts for billionaires and oligarchs, including Vagit Alekperov’s own yacht, the Galactica Super Nova.
Vela, in turn, is owned by the Verona Trust, registered in Guernsey, one of the Channel Islands in the English Channel, which is a crown dependency of the British Empire, but is not part of the United Kingdom or the European Union.

According to Lukoil documents filed on the London Stock Exchange, the Verona Trust is a “discretionary trust whose sole beneficiaries are Mr Alekperov and his family members.” It is also noted that in 2008, Alekperov acquired the Heesen Yachts shipyard from its founder Frans Heesen for $150 million.