Oundle-based luxury yacht company cuts commercial ties with Russia

A yacht-building firm based at Oundle Marina has severed its commercial links to Russia.

Corporations have come under increasing pressure to stop trading in Russia following its invasion of Ukraine in February. Many large companies including McDonald's, Coca Cola and Pepsi have announced a pause in their operations in the country.

International Governments have imposed sanctions on Russian Oligarchs amid concerns over the origin of the money they have used to buy luxury British houses, businesses, planes and yachts.

In January, boat builder Fairline, which is based at Oundle Marina, announced the opening of new dealerships in Moscow and Montenegro. The dealerships, run by third parties, were set to trade as Fairline Russia and Fairline Montenegro. Offices were due to open this year.

However, the link to Fairline Russia has now been removed from the company's website.

A statement to this newspaper from Fairline said: "Fairline currently has one boat on order from an existing (Russian) customer, which is due to be completed later in the year, but there are no other orders in the pipeline. We do not have any commercial ties with Russia. We do not have any parts or components made in Russia or that travel through Russia to our factory."

Fairline previously enjoyed a positive relationship with Russia, and in 2017 the country's 50th anniversary was celebrated at a swanky UK-themed reception at the home of the British ambassador in Moscow.

The event was attended by Fairline's former managing director Russel Currie. At that time, Fairline was owned by low-key UK-based Russian duo Alexander Volov and Igor Glyanenko, whose background was in media. The pair sold a majority stake in Fairline to a European investment fund in 2020 but retained a financial interest.