Final Christensen launched in Vancouver; yard moves to Tennessee

Jun 24, 2019 by Triton Staff

Christensen has launched the last hull to be completed and delivered from its Vancouver yard. 

The 164-foot (50m) Jackpot, launched the week of June 19, was delivered to a pair of experienced owners in New Jersey. 

The yard is moving to facilities that have been under construction since 2008 in Tennessee. One partially completed 164-foot vessel, Hull 42, is expected to launch this week and delivered to a client who will complete the yacht, according to a company press release.

“We owed it to our clients to give them the yachts they had contracted,” stated Henry Luken, chairman of Christensen Shipyards. “That was our priority, along with making sure all our subcontractors, personnel and suppliers were fully repaid what they were owed when the company went into receivership.”

M/Y Jackpot, the final completed Christensen launched from Vancouver.

The move to Tennessee, which puts the yard closer to East Coast markets, will double its capacity, with 13 construction bays in a 55-acre, climate-controlled shed, each capable of accommodating yachts up to 230 feet (70m). According to the company, when the facility opens later this summer, it will be among the world’s largest superyacht build yards under a single roof. The facilities are located in Vonore, Tennessee, adjacent to the Tennessee River and a 20-minute drive from Knoxville. The Tennessee Valley lake-and-river system allows passage for yachts to reach the Gulf of Mexico from the shipyard in under 10 days.

“This is a huge step for us, but also for American yacht building, which has been in steady decline for the last two decades,” Luken stated. “In our new range, we can now compete with any builder in the world in both price and quality, and unlike our existing facility, we can offer yachts virtually unrestricted in beam.”

Luken noted that Tennessee is one of the biggest fiberglass boatbuilding centers in the world, thanks to Sea Ray and other powerboat builders who employ as many as 5,000 builders within a 30-mile radius of the new yard. 

“Tennessee is also at the center of American fine cabinet-making,” Luken said.According to the company, several former owners have expressed interest in its new line of 55-65m high-volume yachts, and the owner of M/Y Chasseur is in negotiations for the purchase of a new LY3-compliant 164-foot (50m) yacht to be built at the new yard.

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