World’s largest superyacht costing £400MILLION and measuring 590 FEET knocks Roman Abramovich off top spot

The world’s largest superyacht was launched yesterday with the £400 million vessel measuring a staggering 590 FEET.

For the past four years, billionaire Chelsea owner Roman Abramovich’s Eclipse has been the largest yacht.

But the oligarch’s 533 ft (162.5) vessel has been relegated to second place after boat builder Lürssen launched Azzam for the first time.

The incredible vessel measures 590ft – making it around around 54ft (17.5m) longer than Eclipse and longer than some cruise ships.

At its widest point, known as the beam, Azzam measures 68.2ft (20.8m) while the hull, which is the depth it goes beneath the water, is 15.8ft (4.3m).

Lürssen, which has been building boats since 1875, launched Azzam from its yard in Bremen, Germany, yesterday.

It was built under the guidance of engineer Mubarak Saad al Ahbabi and was designed by Nauta Yachts with Christophe Leoni creating the interior.

The yacht, described as a “she” by Lürssen, is powered by two gas turbines and two diesel engines which develop a staggering 94,000 horsepower.

This will give it a top speed in excess of 30 knots.

The full details surrounding the boats specification are shrouded in secrecy, but it is rumoured to have been built for a Middle-Eastern billionaire for around £400 million.

Its new owner gave the team behind the project the brief to build a large luxury yacht with an innovative and timeless design that would be able to travel at high speed in warm and shallow waters, whilst providing luxurious and sophisticated accommodation to its guests.

Lürssen described Azzam is the “most complex and challenging yacht which has ever been built”.

Peter Lürssen, managing partner at the shipbuilder, said: “When she will be delivered later this year, she will have been in build for only three years following one year of engineering.

“She truly represents another milestone in not only our history but yachting history as well.”

Peter Seyfferth, from TheYachtPhoto.com, added: “I am very impressed with Azzam and how it was completed in such a short time.

“I wasn’t expecting it to look so elegant but when you compare it to Eclipse it is so much sleeker.

“A lot of architects say we have come to a limit with length now, but who knows?”