Dunya Yachts in Turkey has inked the paperwork to complete the 180-foot explorer yacht Ulucitcan. Interiors will be by Winch Design in the United Kingdom, with delivery expected in 2023.
“At more than 1200 gross tons, she is the biggest single project undertaken by Dunya Yachts since the build of Axioma,” sales and marketing director Jeremy Roche stated in a press release. “We are delighted that the owner has entrusted us to complete his vessel.”
Ulucitcan is a Vripack design whose construction began a decade ago at Newcastle Marine in Florida. The project was paused when the yard ran into financial difficulties. The build, about a third of the way finished, was transported to Italy in late 2017 while the owner searched for another yard. The project ended up in Tunisia, which is where the Dunya team saw her in August 2019.
“The yacht was at the entrance to the marina, with no passarelle and only accessible by climbing a rope ladder from a tender,” Roche stated in the press release. “All the windows were boarded up, and the outside temperature was about 40 degrees Celsius [104 degrees Fahrenheit]. With no A/C, we had to conduct the inspections late at night and very early in the morning—with [flashlights].”
The Dunya team decided all of the project’s flaws were superficial. “She had been built to a good standard with premium brands used for all of the main equipment, much of which had been well preserved,” Roche stated.
What will Ulucitcan’s range be? It’s expected to be 6,000 nautical miles.
Take the next step: dunyayachts.com
