The wealthy around the world will spend millions of dollars on private submarines, following Russian billionaire Roman Abramovich, The Times reports.
According to the publication, in the period from 2019 to 2020, it was about the sale of 15 to 25 submarines, however, this number is expected to double in 2021. According to representatives of the three leading submarine manufacturing companies, next year the market will be estimated at 75 million pounds.
Among the first buyers of deep-sea vessels were the owner of Chelsea Football Club Roman Abramovich, the late Microsoft founder Paul Allen and the Emir of Abu Dhabi, Sheikh Khalifa Al Nahyan.
Roy Heijdra of the Dutch company U-Boat Worx noted that wealthy people increasingly want their yachts to be specially equipped for exploration, not just luxury holidays. According to him, ten vessels were sold in 2020 worth up to £ 2.2 million each. Among them was the Nemo model, which is estimated at 875 thousand pounds, has a height of 2.8 meters and can dive to a depth of more than 90 meters with two people on board.
In turn, the executive director of the Florida company Triton, Bruce Jones, said that compared with the previous year sales of submarines this year rose by almost a third, despite the pandemic coronavirus. At the moment, he has about five orders that need to be completed by the beginning of 2021.