The yacht Force Blue (formerly Big Roi) is a trawler-expedition-style luxury yacht. The yacht was built by Royal Denship in 2002.
She was designed by Ole Steen Knudsen and Tom Fexas. She is part of Royal Denship‘s expedition series. The series includes Turmoil and Big Aron.
Specifications
The yacht is powered by two Caterpillar engines. They bring her a top speed of 18 knots. Her cruisinf speed is 14 knots. She has a long range of 8,000nm.
Interior
The yacht can accommodate 12 guests and has a crew of 17. Her interior is designed by Celeste Dell’Anna.
Owner
The yacht’s owner is Flavio Briatore.
Original Owner
She was built as Big Roi for Roy Speer. He was the founder and owner of the Home Shopping Network.
Force Blue was purchased by Flavio Briatore in 2009. The yacht was refitted with an interior design by Celeste Dell’Anna.
Seized by Italian Police
In 2010 the Italian Financial Police boarded and seized Force Blue. Following the accusation that Briatore had not paid the appropriate amount of taxes on the use of the yacht.
Briatore was convicted for tax evasion of approx US$ 5 million and sentenced to 23 months in prison. Briatore is appealing the sentence.
Put for Auction
Italian media claim the yacht will be put up for auction.
Bought By Bernie Ecclestone
In January 2021, Italian media reported that Bernie Ecclestone bought the yacht Force Blue at auction. He reportedly paid EUR 7.49 million, a fraction of the yacht’s real value.
It is interesting to know that the auction is still subject to a legal procedure at the Italian Supreme Court. The court could decide to return the yacht to Briatore.
But Ecclestone is a long-time business partner and friend of Briatore, so he could have bought the yacht to ‘save it’ for Briatore.
Ecclestone has enough funds as he sold his shares in Formula One Group for more than $ 2 billion in cash.
Ecclestone is the owner of the yacht Petara, which he named after his daughters Petra and Tamara.
Message to Other Media
Please mention SuperYachtFan when using this information! Most photos on this page by Raphael Belly Photography.
Yacht Charter
The boat is not available for yacht charter. And the yacht is not listed for sale.
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