yachtstyle2020

Yacht Style caught up with Gulf Craft Chairman Mohammed Alshaali at the Dubai International Boat Show, where the UAE shipyard revealed eight world premieres and its plans for the rest of 2025.
Interview: Andrew Dembina; Photos: Gulf Craft

Mohammed Alshaali co-founded Gulf Craft in 1982

After decades in diplomatic and political roles for the UAE, Mohammed Alshaali then charted a new course. The new career began as a builder of fishing boats from 1982, before Gulf Craft grew exponentially into a shipyard that today produces a suite of four brands of boat, yacht and superyacht – Oryx, SilverCat, Majesty and Nomad – alongside the continued manufacturing of commercial vessels.

This year, Gulf Craft expects to further the dynamic growth of business with pleasure-boat refit commissions finding a dedicated new home in its currently in-build Superyacht Service Centre facility, as well as – of course – with the production of newly expanded lines, and the launch of a new superyacht. The affable Alshaali took time out from the show to elaborate.

How was the response to Gulf Craft’s models at this year’s Dubai International Boat Show?

The response was very good. We showed 18 yachts, eight of them new: the three Majesty yachts, three Oryx sports boats and two SilverCat powercats. People were especially interested in the new models.

The new [Majesty] 100 Terrace was the star of our display, I would say. Most people see this as being something very unique, particularly with the owner’s terrace and all the space the yacht has,

with five cabins and the Jacuzzi on the upper deck.

Visitors commented that the new Majesty 65, with four bedrooms and four bathrooms, offers so much interior space for guests. The Majesty 120 also got a lot of attention, including from charter operators in the south of France, where it is already being chartered.

The Oryx launches also got a lot of attention. We are relaunching the Oryx brand, as the concept is to bring the yachting experience to the family, and to people with lower budgets. It’s to offer families the chance for parents and kids to be able to enjoy activities out on the open decks – fishing or diving, maybe – and to also have the air-conditioned interiors and cabins on board.

The three new Oryx models [47 LX, 37 FX and 32 FX] gained attention and offer six models in total, because each one is available in a completely open or enclosed design, so they can be exported and suit any market or environment. Asia and Australia would be good markets for these boats.

The new SilverCat 35CC and 35CX powercats also received good comments for their space onboard a 33ft boat, including from visitors from Florida.

Gulf Craft’s idea is to offer something for everyone, whatever your budget. And this year, we had more overseas visitors than ever looking at our boats – including, notably, from America and Europe.

After sharing the design of the Majesty 100 Terrace at the Cannes and Monaco shows last year, how did it feel to see the yacht on show in Dubai?

Working in boat building and waiting for the boat to arrive is like waiting for a child to arrive. When I announced the yacht in Cannes, I was confident that it would be a unique piece. And it has lived up to that.

The Majesty 100 Terrace debuted at Dubai in February and could show in Cannes in September

I was worried about whether we could make it in time because the supply chain for getting all the materials we need is still not what it was some years ago. And, to tell you the truth, a few of the pieces we needed were not delivered in time. For example, we designed pop-up windows for the Majesty 100 Terrace; they didn’t arrive before the show, so we made temporary fixed substitute ones. Finally, we got it to happen, to be on show.

This is probably the first 100ft superyacht that’s all hand painted, like the [Majesty] 120 and the 160 are. Maybe you saw at night that it also has full 360-degree underwater lights. There were so many features we had to get in place to be ready to present it at the show.

The designers were concerned about some of the complicated areas in the interiors and mentioned to us that if we wanted, they could arrange to get those parts done in Italy. We said we were very confident our shipyard could do these, and when they saw the work we had done, they were impressed. And that’s why it really attracted a lot of people at the boat show.

In Cannes last September, I promised that it would be shown there this year, so we are working hard to achieve that.

Which other model(s) received the most attention in Dubai?

I am very pleased with the new [Majesty] 112, with its three decks and six cabins. It’s ideal for charter, without the expense of the 120. And again, like the 100, there are a lot of interesting details in the yacht.

Congratulations on the sale of the first hull of your latest superyacht project, the Majesty 145, due to be launched in spring 2026. Please tell us about this forthcoming new model.

Thank you. It’s related to the [Majesty] 160, as it also has one pool and one Jacuzzi. But it’s a whole new concept from A to Z: the superstructure, the layout and the interior – everything is new. We will be releasing more information soon.

CGI of the Majesty 145, which was sold shortly after its design was revealed

What can you tell us about the upcoming Gulf Craft Superyacht Service Centre?

We already service Gulf Craft yachts and other yards’ boats, but we don’t have enough space to be able to take all the requests for servicing that we receive. With more and more boats coming to the UAE for cruising or specifically for servicing, we think the demand in this area will grow.

At the new service centre we’re building, our 600-tonne lift capacity will be able to move a lot of yachts. We will have the capability to service yachts up to 70m, including their underwater sections; we will offer a draft of 8ft in the water. We already have bookings for servicing in the new facility since we announced it. Hopefully, it will be finished before the end of this year

What have been Gulf Craft’s top three markets in the past few years, and how is the Asia-Pacific market?

The Gulf, of course, and then Europe and the US. Australia has been a market on and off. For us, Asia is smaller numbers and scale of boats or yachts. We have sold one or two in Indonesia, Thailand and Hong Kong. We have been selling to Malaysia since the mid-1980s and Thailand not long after that, but in small quantities. Asia is not a steady market for us.

We had positive sales in China for a while – we sold three yachts within three years at one point, but that slowed down a few years ago. Luxury taxes slowed down our sales and we can’t tell if this will change. For yacht makers outside of Italy or France, it can take time to build a reputation. Our boats are very busy in the charter market, particularly – as mentioned – in the south of France.

How does Gulf Craft’s new tagline, ‘Built for Life’, define the company’s mission statement?

This came after over 40 years of being in shipbuilding. If we said this 20 years ago, people would not have taken it seriously, as our yachts would not have been around for long enough to test how strong they are.

Boatbuilders build for people. Owners grow attached to shipyards, as they come to see it in the process of being built. It’s a very personal thing. One of our customers, Peter Smith, bought a Majesty 130 here in the UAE and cruised it back to Australia where he lived. It hit a really bad storm on the way there, but he got through it.

When he was home, he told me: “If it hadn’t been for the strength of my Gulf Craft boat, I wouldn’t have made it all the way back.” And that boat is still in charter service in Australia now, 20 years later. Yachts with the Gulf Craft name will always reflect on the yard. You have to make sure they have fewer problems – our mission is to make sure they work well, as well as being a pleasure to use.

Finally, what is in the pipeline for Gulf Craft?

To be honest, with the things we have discussed going on, it’s hard to think beyond these just now. Focusing on finishing the Superyacht Service Centre this year is one. We also want to finish a new SilverCat facility and yard we’re building in the UAE, as well as completing the additional new Maldives yard. Another target is to try to finish the Majesty 145, if not for the Dubai 2026 show, then for Cannes next year.

gulfcraftinc.com