Turquoise Yachts: Past, Present, and Future

Turquoise Yachts leads Turkey’s Superyacht Industry Into the 21st Century.

This article was written by Jill Bobrow. Photography courtesy of Turquoise Yachts.

Given that the Bosphorus is the gateway to the Black Sea—which ultimately leads to the Aegean and the Mediterranean—Turkey is no stranger to seafaring craft.

At the intersection of Europe, Asia, and the Middle East, Turkey has been a strategic area for global commerce and trade since ancient times. Today, 21st-century boats and yachts plying the Golden Horn have come a long way from the slender, decorative rowing boats, barges, and caiques used by sultans of the Ottoman Empire. Turkish shipyards are now building state-of-the-art superyachts for high-end international clientele. In fact, Turkey is second only to Italy as the largest yacht building nation in the world, even surpassing the Netherlands.

HERITAGE

Turquoise Yachts, with its heritage dating back to the 1970s, was the first bona fide superyacht builder in Turkey. Early on, it established itself under the name Proteksan Turquoise, hitting its global competitive stride in the mid 1990s under the leadership of co- founder Mehmet Karabeyoğlu, producing such pedigreed vessels as the 50-meter motor yachts Double Trouble (formerly Turquoise) and Mosaique, both with naval architecture by Dubois Naval Architects and interior design by Donald Starkey. Over the years, the company evolved to its current-day success under the singular brand name—Turquoise Yachts.

Intrinsic to Turquoise Yachts’ DNA is the centuries-long memory of Turkish artisanal craftsmanship. Istanbul, the former Constantinople, is one of the world’s most extraordinary cities and it is very welcoming to tourists. Witness to the astonishing architecture of the Hagia Sophia, Topkapi Palace, and the Blue Mosque, Turkish craftsmanship is legendary. A stroll through the covered market of the Grand Bazaar provides a glimpse of historic Turkish handiwork—rugs, mosaics, textiles, copperwork, embroidery, leather, and much more.

TODAY

Dr. Mohammed Al Barwani / MB Group acquired majority ownership of Turquoise Yachts in 2014, and in 2023 became the 100 percent stakeholder of the company. (MB Group has also been the majority stakeholder in the superyacht builder Oceanco, based in the Netherlands since 2010). Turquoise Yachts is managed jointly by Executive Director Burak Akgül and CEO Patrik von Sydow.

“Turquoise Yachts offers outstanding yacht building, flexibility, fast turnaround, the highest possible standards as well as thorough after-sales service. With Turquoise Yachts on track to becoming future proof, I am confident the company’s ongoing growth and management changes are extremely positive,” says Chairman Dr. Mohammed Al Barwani.

The 500+ Turquoise team includes 80 engineers and architects and highly skilled craftspeople. The company operates out of two facilities on the Sea of Marmara. Kocaeli— with capacity for yachts up to 120-meters—is where the heavy steel and aluminum construction and installation of machinery and heavy piping takes place. The hulls and superstructures are then transferred via Turquoise’s own floating dock to its Istanbul facility in Pendik for final outfitting. Recent facility expansions have been supported by investment in technology, design, and engineering studios as well as dedicated project management environments that facilitate companywide communication. There is a constant focus on new production methods and engineering tools.

“Much like the city where it is located, Turquoise is a bridge—bringing together excellence and value in a unique proposition of engineering and craftsmanship to realize our clients’ yachting visions,” says Burak Akgül.

Over the last half a dozen years or so Turquoise has made a splash in the media, at the annual Monaco Yacht Show, and in ports around the world with a number of innovative and award-winning superyachts such as Infinite Jest, Jewels, ROE, Blue II, Go, and Rasha (formerly Razan).

IN BUILD

Currently, Turquoise has several yachts under construction. The 79-meter Project Toro designed by Harrison Eidsgaard was delivered in January 2025 with its true name M/Y Nympheas. The next delivery set for later this year is the H2-designed Project Vento. At 87-meters, she is the largest yacht under construction in Turkey and set to become the yard’s flagship. Also in build is 76-meter Project Arrow, with exterior design by Team for Design-Enrico Gobbi and interior by H2. She has the distinction of being Turquoise Yachts’ first diesel/electric hybrid propulsion motor yacht. Next in line is M/Y Jam, with exterior by A. Vallicelli Yacht Design and interior by H2 Yacht Design, followed by Project Aseel, another 80-meter motor yacht. In the wings are many fully engineered design concepts created for Turquoise Yachts by an international roster of designers, including a project developed jointly with Bannenberg & Rowell and Denison Yachting.

Finally, there are two spec sailing yacht projects: Wildcat and Rainbow II. Wildcat, acquired as an incomplete hull from the Perini Navi 42E-volution series, has naval architecture by Reichel Pugh in collaboration with Southern Spars, and interior by GCA Architect. The 5-meter Rainbow II, a modern classic, began her life in the Netherlands as a hull for a schooner design. She was purchased by Turquoise, brought to Turkey, and has been redesigned by Dykstra Naval Architects as a sloop, with interior by deVosdeVries Design.

TURQUOISE IS MORE THAN A COLOR

The word turquoise is one that evokes the magnificent green/blue color of Bahamian waters, and, of course, it signifies the beautiful gemstone. Ancient Egyptians adorned themselves with turquoise jewelery; there are Chinese turquoise carvings that are more than 3000 years old; turquoise is the national gem of Tibet, and Native Americans have long revered the stone, memorializing it in their handicraft and amulets. The word turquoise is derived from the French expression pierre turques, or Turkish stone. The trade routes that brought turquoise from the mines in central Asia to Europe went through Turkestan or via the Turkish Ottoman empires.

Now what does this have to do with Turquoise Yachts?

While perhaps subliminal, there is a correlation. Turquoise—the stone—is revered in many cultures as embodying wisdom and nobility, with the power of immortality. An Arabic proverb, says, “A turquoise given by a loving hand carries with it happiness and good fortune.” Persians regarded turquoise as a gem uniting heaven and earth. Turquoise Yachts in many ways lives up to its namesake. Turquoise Yachts are modern-day gems creating sparkling reflections in The Seven Seas.

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