Silent-Yachts expands production facilities, business lines

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Viaport Marina Tuzla owned by VisionF founder Coşkun Bayraktar

Austrian-owned Silent-Yachts is now building some its solar-electric catamarans in Turkey following a partnership with VisionF Yachting, the catamaran builder created in 2019 by Coşkun Bayraktar, founder of the Viaport Group.

Silent-Yachts, which secured a company-record 21 sales in 2021, has existing facilities in Italy and Thailand, where its yachts are built by PMG Shipyard.

VisionF has over 100,000sqm of production area including the Viaport Marina Tuzla in east Istanbul. The Turkish builder has begun producing units from the Silent 60 and 80 series of solar-electric catamarans along with the brand’s flagship Silent 120, the former Silent 100 Explorer.

The Silent VisionF 82 is a hybrid catamaran

The new cooperation has also led to the new Silent VisionF 82, an 82ft hybrid model incorporating both conventional propulsion and renewable solar energy as Silent-Yachts helps the Turkish shipyard make its catamarans more sustainable. The model features solar panels on an extended hardtop and a powerful battery bank to power all onboard appliances, so guests can enjoy silence in a bay or marina.

Michael Köhler, founder and CEO of Silent-yachts, said: “I’m immensely proud of what Silent-Yachts has achieved over the years. After beginning our research into solar yacht technologies in 2004, the company has evolved and expanded, and last year’s sales show we continue to grow.

“We are now a truly international Group with diverse interests requiring more extensive resources and production space. This enables us to collaborate with other shipyards such as VisionF to assist them in harnessing solar technology as a step towards a more sustainable future.”

The Silent Tender 400 is a 4m electric tender; © Akoni Design Studio

Köhler has also announced a new corporate structure, with Silent-Yachts among several companies within Silent Group. The parent company also includes divisions for tenders, management, charter, brokerage, resorts and an online shop.

Silent-Tenders will start with a 4m electric model, while Silent-Shop is a web-based outlet for electric water toys, smart electric gadgets and Silent merchandising products.

Silent-Charter offers Silent catamarans for charter from the fleet base at Port Adriano in Mallorca and around the world, while Silent-Resorts is a developer of zero-carbon, ultra-sustainable resorts with luxurious solar-powered beachfront residences.

A Silent 80 in build in Fano, Italy; Photo: Alessandro Guerrieri

Silent-Brokerage offers brokerage services for pre-owned vessels for sale by Silent and its clients, while Silent-Management offers full management services for Silent clients including documentation, flag registration, certification, inspections, crew hiring, charter, yacht management and maintenance.

Across its three sites, Silent-Yachts is currently building 17 yachts comprising eight 60 series, six 80 series, the flagship Silent 120 and two Silent VisionF 82 hybrid catamarans.

In Italy, Silent-Yachts builds the Silent 60 and 80 series at its Adriatic coast shipyard in Fano, which has 22,000sqm of covered facilities across five sheds, plus a similar amount of outdoor space. In Thailand, the company cooperates with the Swiss-owned PMG Shipyard, which produces the Silent 60 series at its 20,800sqm facility in Rayong near Pattaya.