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Once I happened to be one of those few lucky soviet teenagers who got the rare opportunity to be involved into sailing in the USSR. In 1968 I started sailing on Cadets, and later changed to Dragons. Then I subsequently sailed on yachts of ¼, ½ and 1-tonne class and even 60-feet catamaran. Of course, for me then it was only a hobby at my leisure time. One had to work a lot in order to survive. But we managed to achieve good results even then.
I am proud of the fact that in 1992-1994 I have successfully built the first megayacht in the post-soviet countries – 88-feet classic schooner ‘Black Drop’. At that time I was the top manager of a large British Company dealing with oil transportation. The schooner was intended for the presentational purposes (now she is owned by the Spanish Navy). At present I live in New Zealand and the realization of non-standard yachting projects has become my profession.
I personally believe that under any circumstances the primary goal of any yachting project is its success and originality. The example of this approach is my current project - classic schooner ‘Imperia’, the 52-meter oak hull of which has no analogues in the world.
For my custom made yachts projects I prefer to utilise the experience and prestige of the New Zealand’s leading designers. But for the realization of those projects, apart from all the familiar shipyards in the world, I also use one ‘lost paradise’. This is the ‘Liman’ shipyard in Nikolaev (Ukraine) with which I cooperate since 1992. The manager of the shipyard is an old friend of mine met through sailing - Sergey Isakov. ‘Liman’ is the shipyard intended for the accomplishment of complicated and demanding projects. This is where I can place orders for the megayachts with the steel, aluminium and wooden hulls of the LOA up to 70 meters (232 feet). This particular shipyard’s sharp and valuable distinction from many other shipyards is that it has its own design office team with the team of 50 qualified specialists, interconnected with each other via the multicomputer system. This enables to produce working drawings for the projects quickly and efficiently. Another major advantage is that the labour is still quite cheap in the Ukraine, even the qualified labour, which is unique and important for a large shipyard like ‘Liman’ where the number of qualified workers totals to 300.
In the Ukraine I also managed to find talented designers for the creation of elegant yacht interiors, and ‘Liman’ has arranged a special workshop and selected experienced cabinet-makers in order to create quality interiors using fine wood. Their workmanship will delight even the most sophisticated and demanding customers.
In addition to all mentioned above, the Ukrainian legislation permits (only for the purposes of shipbuilding) temporary import of equipment customs’ duties which enables to avoid non-productive outlays. Besides the Ukraine is the geographical centre of Europe, where many of the convenient marine communications intersect.
Even though economic and political conditions of the Ukraine are still unstable, my knowledge of the language and local conditions combined with the old, time-proven friendship with Sergey Isakov and our mutual trust make a good guarantee for the success of my pursuits.
My company Aries Pacific is a member of the New Zealand Marine Industry Association, and I am the first Ukrainian member of the RNZYS. We are located in one of the most beautiful spots of the Country of Sails in 30 minutes drive from Auckland. Our boats are just as beautiful as New Zealand and just as strong as Ukrainian vodka! My professional background guarantees thorough observance of all the business and financial liabilities as well as the strict confidentiality.
Sincerely Yours,
Alex Kirichuk
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