Eric Schmidt purchases abandoned Alfa Nero superyacht for $67.6 million – Orange County Register

Stephanie Baker and Jim Wyss | Bloomberg

Eric Schmidt, the former CEO of Google, has made an extravagant purchase. He recently acquired the Alfa Nero superyacht, which had been abandoned in Antigua after the Russian invasion of Ukraine in March 2022.

In a highly transparent process, Schmidt purchased the vessel for a whopping $67.6 million. This revelation was shared by Sir Ronald Sanders, Antigua’s ambassador to the US.

The 267-foot superyacht is equipped with a baby grand piano and a swimming pool that transforms into a helipad. It had been left behind in Antigua’s Falmouth Harbour after Russian fertilizer billionaire Andrey Guryev was sanctioned by the US Treasury. However, Guryev denies claims that he had acquired the Alfa Nero in 2014 for $120 million.

Schmidt’s foundation has yet to issue a statement regarding this purchase.

Despite a last-minute injunction filed by Guryev’s daughter, the auction for the Alfa Nero proceeded on Friday, as confirmed by Antigua Port Manager Darwin Telemaque.

The proceeds from the auction will be used to cover the mounting expenses the superyacht has accumulated during its time in the harbor. The crew expenses alone amount to a staggering $112,000 per month. Telemaque assures that the sale price will address all outstanding liabilities.

As a result of the sanctions imposed on Russia’s wealthiest individuals following the invasion, over two dozen superyachts worth approximately $4 billion have been frozen in ports worldwide.

Schmidt, whose estimated net worth is $25 billion according to the Bloomberg Billionaires Index, served as Google’s CEO for nearly a decade. Notably, he was appointed as the chair of the Broad Institute, a prestigious research organization located in Cambridge, Massachusetts, two years ago.