In April last year, Meyer Werft announced its intention to build ‘Ulyssia’, one of the largest and most exclusive residential yachts. The contract has now been awarded to a Chinese company.
Meyer Werft and Ulyssia Residences AG signed the memorandum of understanding regarding the construction of the residential yacht in April 2025. At the time, it was stated that construction of the super-yacht was due to begin later that same year.
It is now clear that the 320-metre-long ‘Ulyssia’ will not be built in Papenburg, but in China. Ulyssia Residences, the company founded by Frank Binder, has chosen China Merchants Shipbuilding as the shipyard. The contract is said to be worth around €2 billion.
The residential yacht for an exclusive community
When the letter of intent regarding the project’s construction was announced, it was stated that the “Ulyssia” was to house one of the “world’s most exclusive residential yacht communities”. The plans included 133 permanent residences and 22 guest suites. The smallest residential unit, measuring 110m², was expected to cost over €9 million.
The design for the vessel is by architect Espen Øino, with the interior design by FM Architettura. Its length was stated as around 320 m, which would make the “Ulyssia” the largest yacht in the world. The current record is held by the “Rev Ocean” at 195 m, followed by the 180 m-long “Azzam”.
As Meyer Werft announced a year ago, delivery of the “Ulyssia” was scheduled for 2030. All phases of construction were to be carried out by Meyer Yachts in Papenburg.
CMI has not yet delivered any yachts
The state-owned shipyard China Merchants Shipbuilding Industry Group (CMI), headquartered in Hong Kong, operates several shipyard sites across China. CMI’s portfolio consists primarily of car carriers, offshore vessels, tankers and ferries. The shipyard currently has no experience in yacht building.
In the cruise sector, CMI has so far built the Infinity-class vessels for the US cruise line SunStone Ships at its Haimen site. The series, comprising seven vessels, was launched in 2019 and will be delivered by 2025. These are 104-metre-long, 8,000 GT expedition cruise ships with Polar Class 6 certification. It remains to be seen whether the experience gained from this project will be sufficient to satisfy the exclusive tastes of the super-rich clientele.
