trieste, italy —
Expensive floating objects have been an eyesore at the harbor in the northern Italian city of Trieste for more than four years, costing Italian taxpayers millions of dollars to maintain, the city’s mayor said.
Russian oligarch Andrei Igorevich Melnichenko’s Sailing Yacht A, one of the world’s largest sailing ships and worth around $600 million, was in port in Trieste for maintenance in March 2022, when Russia’s invasion of Ukraine triggered widespread sanctions and seizures of Russian assets.
Among them was Mr. Melnichenko’s 468-foot vessel, once dubbed the “world’s ugliest yacht” and simply known as “A” by locals who disliked it. Designed by Philippe Starck, this superyacht features a ghostly exterior, with barely visible windows set into a gleaming armored steel frame. Its three rotating carbon masts are as tall as an eight-story palace, and its silhouette is now a staple of the busy port, where dozens of cruise ships dock each week.
In September 2025, Mayor Roberto DiPiazza raised the issue of who would pay for the yacht’s mooring and upkeep in a national campaign, calling it a “shame” and threatening to sell it or sail away. DiPiazza told CNN that the cost to keep the ship afloat is about $30,000 a day, or about $11 million a year, including paying for the 20-person crew, fuel to run the generators, specialized cleaning, security and insurance.
According to Italian law, quarantined ships must be maintained and cannot be left to rust or sink. If sanctions against Melnichenko are lifted, he will have to repay the costs of recovering the vessel. “In the end, it will be cheaper for him to buy a new yacht than to pay back everything we spent,” DiPazza said. “And what will that do to us? We may end up paying the price for this monster for years to come.”
Melnichenko, a banker and businessman with an estimated fortune of about $20 billion, contested the seizure of the yacht in summer 2022, arguing that it was not owned directly by him, but by a company called Vara Sails through a trust set up by his wife. The case was heard in the courts of Rome in 2022, and eventually went to the Court of Justice of the European Union, which ruled in 2025 that Italy had the right to maintain isolation, and with it the obligation to do so.
Sailing Yacht A is not the only Russian yacht that cost Italians money. In Tuscany’s Marina di Carrara port, the six-story, 465-foot superyacht Scheherazade is moored behind a high wall to ensure safety and concealment from curious onlookers. It is reportedly licensed to Rosneft executive Eduard Khudainatov, but Russian opposition leader Alexei Navalny has credibly claimed that it actually belongs to Russian President Vladimir Putin.
According to transponder signals recorded by Vessel Finder, on August 28 of this year, the ship set sail north toward Italy’s Rivi area, heavily flanked by Italian security forces. A spokesperson for Italian Sea Group, which is docked at the dock, said the ship was carrying out technical tests as part of maintenance and returned 10 hours later.
According to the Superyacht Times, the superyacht is worth $700 million and has twin helipads and a pool that converts into a dance floor, among its many amenities.
Scheherazade’s mooring contract was paid through September, according to tax records reviewed by CNN. Italian Sea Group did not say who paid for these moorings or who is currently paying them. Local newspapers report that since the island was quarantined, Tuscan taxpayers have paid more than $15 million for a skeleton crew of British and Russian men who are rotated several times a year. Last year, a film crew that tried to approach the ship was chased away by drones and water cannons.
Additional costs include security to ensure no one gets close to the ship and security to ensure no one sets sail during quarantine.
Other vessels Italy is paying for upkeep include the sleek 210-foot superyacht Lady M, owned by Alexei Mordashov, an ally of President Vladimir Putin and a major shareholder in Severstal, Russia’s largest steel and mining company. Forbes estimates Mordashov’s net worth at about $37 billion. Matteo Bongian, deputy director of the Marina di Imperia port, told Forbes that Lady M has been quarantined at Imperia, costing Italian taxpayers about $2 million so far.
The 126-foot superyacht Lena, owned by Gennady Timchenko, another Putin ally, is maintained nearby.
All quarantined vessels have crew members who maintain the yachts at the expense of the Italian government. Other costs include the use of air conditioning to prevent mold growth inside.
Italy is not the only country in Europe grappling with the costs of quarantining yachts. Germany holds $800 million in dirbar that was once owned by the sister of sanctioned Russian tycoon Alisher Usmanov. France is funding the maintenance of Amore Bella, owned by sanctioned oligarch Igor Sechin, and Spain is keeping Tango, owned by sanctioned Russian oligarch Viktor Vekselberg.
Gibraltar was able to auction off Russian steel tycoon Dmitry Pampyansky’s 236-foot-tall Axioma for about $37.5 million, according to Reuters. The United States has sold several ships, including the Amadea, owned by twice-sanctioned Russian politician Suleiman Kerimov.
Not all countries choose to pay maintenance fees if national law does not require them. Sanctioned Russian Andrei Guliyev’s massive 353-foot Luminosity has been left to rust and rot in quarantine in Montenegro, according to images posted on social media by Benetti Yachts, the company that built the ship. Montenegro tried to sell the yacht for 135 million euros in 2024, but the sale was ultimately blocked and the yacht remains abandoned at the Porto Montenegro marina in Tivat.
Italian Prime Minister Giorgia Meloni is a strong supporter of maintaining sanctions against Russian oligarchs linked to President Vladimir Putin, warning the Italian Senate last month that any detente or agreement with Russia is a “very dangerous choice.” Many, like DiPiazza, the mayor of Trieste, feel that taxpayers should not be responsible for the upkeep of the oligarch’s toys.
