How to turn a €12m Search & Rescue vessel into a €50m Global Expedition Yacht

How do you turn a €12 million commercial vessel into a global expedition yacht in a class with builds costing many times that? Everyone in this market says the same thing: there are no good ice-class expedition yachts available, and a new one is three to four years and tens of millions away. Here is the exception. A 68-metre (225ft) ice-class search & rescue vessel, built for the Danish government for year-round North Sea service, with a modern Rolls-Royce diesel-electric system showing just 450 hours. She does what almost nothing else can: 19 knots on a true ice-class hull, retractable folding-fin stabilizers that pull into the hull for the ice, and an ice-class bulbous bow — all already built in. In this Yacht Channel Listing Review, Paul Madden walks her the way he would for a private client, then lays out the conversion plan with expedition captain Grant Maughan's design study: a Skybox, a doubled bridge, a transom helipad, an existing launch-and-retrieval bay, and the space of a far larger yacht for just nine crew. The owners have just dropped the asking price by €3 million — from €15M to €12M — and sensible offers below that are being entertained. To replace her new, to the same spec as a search & rescue vessel, in a commercial yard is roughly €25M and 2 years of waiting. What she is worth finished, and the right entry number, is a conversation for serious buyers — reach out and Paul will walk you through it. If you want a real ice-class expedition yacht without the three-to-four-year wait, this is the smartest entry into the market right now. Come see her in Vigo. XplorerYachts.com, or contact Paul directly. Chapters 0:00 €12M In, €50M Out — How? 1:11 Three Things No Other Expedition Yacht Has 3:28 Built by a Government, Zero Compromise 4:45 What Grant Maughan Would Do With Her 6:30 Nine Crew, the Space of a 90-Metre 8:05 The Plan: Spain, Norse, and a One-Year Conversion 8:55 What the Market Says 9:35 Come See Her in Vigo Specs Designation: C-242 ("Ocean Xplorer") • Type: Custom Ice-Class Expedition (ex-government SAR) • Year: 2012 • LOA: 68 m (225 ft) • Beam: 11.3 m (37 ft) • Max draft: 3.7 m (12 ft) • Hull: Steel, ice-class • Max speed: 19 kn • Cruise: 17 kn • Range: 4,500 nm • Propulsion: Rolls-Royce B5J diesel-electric, 2 x 1,800 kW (3,600 kW), 3 x MAN gensets, ~450 hours • Stabilizers: Brown Brothers Aquarius retractable folding fins • Accommodation (as built): 9 crew / 11 cabins / 15 heads • Lying: Vigo, Spain • Asking: €12,000,000 (was €15M). Disclaimer This video is market commentary and the personal opinion of Paul Madden / Xplorer Yachts. All specifications and condition references are drawn from the vessel's brochure, the builder's documentation, and other sources believed accurate but not guaranteed. All values are estimates and subject to independent survey and negotiation. Nothing here is legal, financial, or investment advice. Vessel renderings are conceptual design studies; vessel names, marks, and images remain the property of their respective owners and are used for identification and commentary. #ExpeditionYacht #IceClass #Superyacht #ExplorerYacht #YachtConversion #YachtForSale #SeaXplorer #Superyachts #XplorerYachts #TheYachtChannel