By Zya Williams

Chief of Staff in the Office of the Prime Minister, Lionel Hurst, has suggested that potential buyers are interested in acquiring the Alfa Nero.

When asked about the vessel being moved from Falmouth today, he said, “That’s just an exercise. Every so often, you must move it to rid it of the barnacles that are attached to the harlot and so on. So that exercise. But we do have interest from some buyers.”

“We want to announce it because we don’t want to spook anyone. But we have some interest,” he added.

The Alfa Nero has been docked in Falmouth Harbour for nearly two years, posing environmental and security concerns, particularly after Andrey Guryev, a close associate of Russian President Vladimir Putin, was sanctioned following the 2022 Ukraine invasion.

Despite an auction in 2023, legal disputes resulted in the withdrawal of Eric Schmidt’s highest bid of US$67 million.

The ongoing maintenance of the Alfa Nero, which costs the public US$28,000 weekly from the Citizenship by Investment fund, coupled with crew salaries, underscores the urgency of securing a buyer.