Australian shipbuild Austal Shipyard, based in Western Australia, is nearing completion of a new US29.25 million luxury yacht.

This first yacht that Austal has built in four years, following a disastrous falling out with Australian golfer, Greg Norman.

According to The Australian newspaper, Austal lost US$16.45 million after building a yacht for Mr Norman, who then demanded changes during its construction, leading to a large cost blowout.

Mr Norman then sold the vessel for a large profit, which added insult to injury. 

Austal Global Sales Director Andrew Bellamy said that the company had learnt its lesson and now only semi-customising vessels, and leaving plenty of leeway for new owners to customise them after purchasing them.

“We lost a lot of money,” the paper quoted Mr Bellamy as saying, “The Norman boat would have to be one of the most expensive boats Austal has built. The lesson has been learnt.”

Speaking of the new yacht, Mr Bellamy said that it was several weeks away from completion and that the company had already received enquiries from several interested buyers.

Disclosure: Members of the Baird family or companies in the Baird Publications group own shares in Austal.