Created in partnership with an unnamed UK design studio, the project follows a year of quiet progress since her keel was laid in late 2024.
Abeking 6516 began construction at the G&K SteelCon facilities in Poland, where her keel was laid on 26 November 2024 in a ceremony attended by the owner’s representatives, the shipyard, subcontractors, and the classification society. The move to Germany this week completes her transit from Poland after hull and superstructure work, a step that mirrors the approach taken for several large European new builds.
What the First Images Reveal
The first images reveal a pronounced bow and a clean, modern line running from forward to aft, shaped to give the yacht long, continuous surfaces across her tiered decks. While the design studio has not been named, Abeking & Rasmussen has confirmed the work comes from a well-known UK office. The profile of the yacht leans toward a contemporary aesthetic with horizontal emphasis, while the broad decks hint at generous outdoor spaces.
Her owner remains undisclosed, though internal briefing documents confirm that the client has experience with yachts significantly larger than this project.
The motor yacht sits on a displacement steel hull with an aluminum superstructure and is built to Lloyd’s Register technical standards. At 79.95m with a 13.3m beam and a gross tonnage of 2,600 GT, she returns Abeking & Rasmussen to the 80-meter bracket the yard knows well.
Interior Direction and Onboard Features
Information about the interior remains limited. The yard describes the spaces as modern and cozy in character. Tenders and water toys will form part of the onboard package, with more detailed layout information expected closer to launch. Naval architecture is by Abeking & Rasmussen, with the design brief focused on established engineering values rather than experimental systems.
Launch is anticipated in 2026, followed by sea trials and final handover. She has projected delivery of May 2027. Her journey down the Kiel Canal indicates that outfitting will now accelerate within the yard’s facilities in Lemwerder.
Abeking & Rasmussen’s Modern Icons and Their Influence
Abeking 6516 sits within a period defined by several landmark builds that continue to shape expectations for the yard’s 80- to 120-meter output. The most recent of these is the 118m Liva, delivered in 2023 and ranked 45 in the prestigious YachtBuyer YB100, the ranking of the world’s biggest yachts by the true measurement of gross tonnage. Liva’s quiet diesel-electric system, underwater Neptune Lounge, and stripped-back black profile signaled a shift toward cleaner forms supported by complex engineering. She is the largest yacht in the yard’s history.
That trajectory is also visible in Aviva, which entered the YB100 at number 47 and remains one of the yard’s most technically ambitious projects. Her full-size padel court forced a structural approach usually reserved for much larger craft, while her long glass lines and concealed detailing gave a 4,999 GT yacht a lighter visual footprint than expected for the volume.
Excellence, delivered in 2019, introduced another direction entirely through Winch Design’s reverse bow and mirrored glass superstructure. It reinforced the yard’s willingness to pursue distinctive architecture when the brief calls for it. Together, these yachts outline a clear pattern: high volume supported by advanced engineering and strong design authorship. That context sets the stage for how Abeking 6516 is likely to develop through outfitting.
Abeking 6516 now moves into the phase where her profile, systems, and interior character will take shape inside the yard. As outfitting progresses, she will reveal how this new project interprets, or departs from, the design and engineering themes that have defined Abeking & Rasmussen’s recent flagship builds.
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