In English, the Dutch word draak means “dragon.” In real life, the yacht Draak is a shadow yacht in the midst of a rebuild at Oceanco. In fact, having just relaunched, she’ll handle dive operations and more for a megayacht whose name conjures images of overwhelmingly powerful sea creatures.
A 2014 delivery from Oceanco—she launched as Equanimity (below)—the yacht Draak had been in her owner’s hands for about two years before the major reconstruction started. That owner is Gabe Newell, an American gaming entrepreneur and yachting enthusiast who also owns the superyacht Leviathan. (His experience building Leviathan further led Newell to acquire Oceanco last year.) As Equanimity and later as Tranquility, the 300-footer (91.5-meter) was the first yacht to comply with the Passenger Yacht Code, allowing 18 guests to stay aboard. Sunning spaces, a plunge pool, spacious interior lounges, and additional creature comforts suited private cruises and especially charters. However, Newell wanted Draak to serve primarily as a dive-support platform and to host further guests and crew. That necessitated a complete rethinking and redesign of exterior and interior areas.
Crucially, the same project team that oversaw the build of Leviathan took the lead for Draak. “Strong collaboration between all parties was needed to re-engineer the yacht’s DNA,” explains Dan Morgan, the managing director of YTMC, which served as Newell’s representative. This collaboration involved both yachts’ crews as well as Oceanco’s original design team, its current engineering and construction teams, plus subcontractors.
For instance, the yacht Draak will carry a dive tender out on deck. The operations for launching, retrieval, and boarding all required reconfiguring the structure of the superyacht. Specifically, Oceanco removed the aft helideck on the upper deck. A hefty-capacity crane to lift the dive tender now sits on the remaining aft portion of that deck. Further heavy-duty davits—aptly named C-davits, due to their shape—sit alongside the tender. Additionally, augmenting safety when guests board the tender was a priority. Therefore, about three feet (1 meter) of length was added to the existing boarding platform. This also allowed incorporating retractable fenders and swim steps. “Integration of large-scale equipment optimized for operational efficiency and versatility will bring added robust capability to enhance the fleet’s program, as well as the guest and crew experience,” Morgan says.
A proper dive-support yacht needs a proper dive center, of course. To that end, what previously was the beach club and spa now suits the purpose. It includes a decompression chamber. Furthermore, a formal main saloon was no longer practical for the yacht Draak. Instead, it became an ample crew mess and immersive dining experience for all aboard. A chef’s lab—not just a chef’s table—ensures enjoyable day and night meals wherein friends and crew who went on dives together can recount their trips. Finally, extra cabins can accommodate guests or crew depending on the need.
Edwin Schneider, who contributed to Equanimity’s build and currently is Oceanco’s Life Cycle Support project manager, notes the complexity of the rebuild. “The new layout required a complete overhaul of several key systems, including ventilation and electrical infrastructure,” he explains. “On a refit of this scale, everything is interconnected, and every decision had to be carefully evaluated for knock-on effects. With the extent of the changes, we effectively had to open up the entire yacht.”
With a new length of about 305 feet (93 meters) and a volume of 2,951 gross tons, the yacht Draak is still at Oceanco for final touches. She’ll undergo sea trials in the coming weeks.
Oceanco oceancoyacht.com
More About the Yacht Draak
LOA: 304’6” (92.8 meters)
Beam: 45’11” (14 meters)
Draft: 12’9” (3.9 meters)
Guests: not specified (18 in 9 staterooms at original launch)
Engines: 2/4,828-hp MTUs
Range: 5,000 nautical miles at 15 knots
Builder: Oceanco
Stylist: Oceanco
Naval Architect: Oceanco, Azure Yacht Design & Naval Architecture
Interior Designer: Vedder