The deck of the world’s largest sailing superyacht was crafted from illegitimate Burmese teak, an environmental agency has claimed.
Sailing Yacht A, a £330 million superyacht owned by Russian billionaire Andrey Igorevich Melnichenko, was pictured on its first sailing test last week as German engineers put the finishing touches to its construction.
However, a two-month investigation by the Environmental Investigation Agency (EIA) alleged a shipment of 1,278 pieces of illegitimate teak, costing €174,750 (£160,000), was used aboard the yacht.
The wood was imported from Burma - also known as Myanmar - by Teak Solutions, who EIA claim failed to identify risks of illegal harvesting in its supply chain.
EIA have now submitted legal complaints against nine companies, including Teak Solutions, for failing to identify or verify the source of the wood, their right to harvest, and being in violation of the European Union Timber Regulation (EUTR).
Peter Cooper, EIA’s Forests Campaigner, said he hoped the action would send a clear message to the superyacht industry.
“This investigation gave us the opportunity to expose a practice that we hope will send a message across the industry,” he told The Independent.
“We knew specifically the yacht industry and the superyacht industry was one of the main users of teak in the EU.
“It’s about consumers having the right to know where their wood is coming from and it’s about the people of Myanmar knowing their wood is being harvested in the correct way.”
EIA do not believe that that Mr Melnichenko had any knowledge that the teak was illegitimate, however, it said companies had a responsibility to practice due diligence.
In a report of its findings, the agency said: “We recognise that the companies involved have all made some effort to comply with the EUTR due diligence obligations but were prevented by the Myanmar Timber Enterprise, a Government entity responsible for the harvest and sale of teak in Myanmar, from acquiring or verifying any of the essential information required.
“Nonetheless, each company has still proceeded to procure and place products on the market in the absence of information fundamental to due diligence.”
Mr Cooper said due diligence was crucial to put a stop to the over harvesting ravaging Burma’s forests, one of the country’s richest natural resources.
“Legally sourced timber requires you to go through the supply chain and identify any risks of illegality to stop illegal harvesting,” he said.
“With the amount of over-harvesting going on, there’s no semblance of sustainability and because it has been happening at such an unsustainable rate, the Burmese have had to put a logging ban in place.
“If Myanmar Enterprise does not better regulate the system, it risks losing trade with the EU altogether.”
Built by Blohm+Voss Shipyard near Hamburg, and designed by Philippe Starck, Sailing Yacht A was pictured on its maiden test sail near Strande, northern Germany on Sunday.
The superyacht comprises eight decks, seven cabins and 330 ft tall masts.
Mike Kimble, owner of Teak Solutions, told The Independent: “I cannot comment further. We are a reputable company and in this, far more reputable and honourable than the claimant.
"Be careful most reputable news organisations are now running from this story to let the real authorities inspect and make judgement. And we will be cleared.”
