Heesen Launches 55m Project Castor

In a prosperous week for the Dutch shipyard, as it also released footage of the highly-anticipated Project Electra on sea trials, Heesen has once again proven that the challenges of COVID19 present no barrier to its production success.

Heesen has confirmed that the introduction of drastic measures early on in the coronavirus crisis meant that physical distancing was effectively enforced at the yard, which was in turn able to carry on production in accordance with Dutch governmental guidelines with as little disruption as possible.

By halving the number of employees working in the shipyard at any one time by splitting teams into two shifts, Heesen managed to retain productivity levels and increase flexibility.

The 760GT superyacht Project Castor is ‘the most voluminous 55 metre currently offered by a Northern European shipyard’, Heesen has said in a statement. Powered by two MTU 8V 4000 M63 diesel main engines, Castor will reach top speeds of 15.5 knots and boast an impressive range of 4,5000 nautical miles at 13 knots.

Heesen has attributed Project Castor’s impressive performance to its signature FDHF (fast displacement hull form) devised by Dutch architects Van Oossanen. The Heesen 55-metre FDHF Steel couples fantastic seakeeping capabilities with efficient fuel consumption, at a higher level than any other yacht in her class.

Rupert Connor of Luxury Yacht Group, who represents the client, comments, “We have been beyond impressed with how the Heesen team adapted to the COVID-19 pandemic. They have adjusted their working hours to increase social distancing yet retain optimal man hours on our project and preserve an on-time, high-quality delivery which is no small feat in these challenging times.”

Project Castor houses remarkable room for up to 12 guests in six spacious staterooms, with the master suite located forward on main deck. Four exquisite guest cabins (two double and two twin) are located on lower deck, while the VIP is on bridge deck. Project Castor is the first yacht in her class to offer this new configuration.

Scheduled for delivery to her owners in August, we look forward to spotting this exceptional superyacht on her upcoming sea trials in the North Sea.