Tuhura, Oceanco unveils its latest 115-meter yacht

Tuhura, Oceanco’s latest project, conceived in collaboration with the Lobanov Design studio, BMT Nigel Gee and interior designer Achille Salvagni, was

unveiled by His Excellency Saeed Hareb, Secretary General of Dubai Sports Council, Vice President and Chairman of Dubai International Marine Club -

Mina Seyahi, and Senior Advisor to the Dubai International Boat Show.

Tuhura is truly in a category of its own, unlike any yacht on the market. Its design harkens back to ancient times. The exterior styling is reminiscent of early

canoes; dugouts and other vessels used hundreds of years ago by indigenous people all over the world. The Polynesians, in particular, famously made long

voyage explorations across thousands of miles of open Pacific Ocean in their outrigger canoes. The thinking behind revisiting basic primal forms is to evoke a

sense of exploration and discovery. In fact, the actual name, ‘Tuhura’ is derived from the Maori verb meaning: to discover, bring to light, unearth, open up,

explore, and investigate.

“Our Tuhura is a simple idea,” explains Igor Lobanov, “The thought was to take a natural shape similar to those seen in the earliest canoe-type craft and

augment it multifold to a larger scale, using modern technology.”

The main inspiration for the interior design is East Asia and the Pacific islands. Achille Salvagni refers to the interior as a “brushed teak habitat” (floors,

walls, ceilings) including thin reveals in gunmetal and natural bronze with tatami floors. “Tuhura is a megayacht conceived for a dynamic owner, nevertheless

the timeless sense of peace and calmness are the main characteristics,” says Salvagni. “This softness and dynamicity are reflected in the humble elegance and

sensuality of the primitive organic shapes echoed throughout.”

Lobanov’s masterful exterior design works well with the interior and is inherently flexible so that the yacht can be designed in any size from 80-120 meters in

length.

Tuhura’s hull and propulsion system have been developed in collaboration with BMT. The pure simplicity of the canoe form leads to a naturally efficient hull

with low overall resistance, good seakeeping and excellent maneuverability. However integrating a modern propulsion system in the canoe form presents a

challenge and the team opted for a hybrid Azipod® CRP (contra-rotating) propulsion system from ABB. The development of this system was initially trialed

in 2003 and it is currently being applied with success on commercial vessels. James Roy, Yacht Design Director at BMT, stated, “The hybrid CRP system is

inherently efficient and perfectly suited to the canoe form, there is a synergy between the efficiency of the hull form, and that of the propulsion system,

leading to a yacht which marries an evolutionary simple hull with an evolutionary advanced propulsion system”

Innovation and cutting-edge technology is evident throughout the design. The hull has been conceived with multiple horizontal windows, utilising an

advanced glass technology that consists of a series of dots, allowing the view from within to be completely transparent, while from the exterior, the windows

appear the same colour as the hull, disguising their appearance. Glass features further in the impressive black superstructure made up of flat glass panels.