shipping
Australian billionaire wants to recreate the Titanic
“I have two options: Either I give my wife more money to shop or I spend it on the Titanic – and I spend it on the Titanic because she bought enough”: Billionaire Clive Palmer. photo
© Bianca De Marchi/AAP/dpa
Clive Palmer has a dream: The extremely rich Australian wants to send a new Titanic to the world’s oceans. So far it has remained the vision of an eccentric – is it really starting?
An Australian billionaire wants to recreate the Titanic – not just true to the original, including the ballroom and pool, but even “better than the original”. The mining magnate Clive Palmer (69) announced his ambitious plan at the Sydney Opera House.
The maiden voyage of the Titanic II from Southampton, UK, to New York is scheduled to take place in June 2027 and, unlike the ill-fated voyage in 1912, will take place without a collision with an iceberg. Palmer wants to spend between 500 million and one billion Australian dollars (between 300 and 600 million euros) to fulfill his long-held dream.
First attempt failed
It is not the first time that the extremely wealthy entrepreneur has presented his vision of a new Titanic: he had already announced a corresponding project in 2012. But then there were more and more delays, for example due to the corona pandemic and, according to media reports, also due to payment disputes with a Chinese company involved.
“There were a lot of things that didn’t go right when we first presented the project,” Australian news agency AAP quoted him as saying. “But I’m still here with the same commitment, and now that the pandemic is over, we will do it.” The eccentric billionaire did not say which shipyard the luxury liner would be built at. Construction will begin at the beginning of 2025.
Palmer: Money for my wife’s shopping or for the Titanic
The Titanic is more than just a ship, enthused Palmer, who also worked as a politician for a time. “She is an epic example of courage, resilience and commitment to all of us.” When asked whether financing was secured, he replied that he had significantly more money today than ten years ago and could build several Titanics if he wanted. “I have two options: Either I give my wife more money to shop or I spend it on the Titanic – and I spend it on the Titanic because she has bought enough.”
The “Titanic” left Southampton in southern England on April 10, 1912 with more than 2,200 people on board for its maiden voyage to New York. After just a few days, the luxury liner, which was considered unsinkable, hit an iceberg – and sank. More than 1,500 people died.