Tankoa launches the TX450 in Genoa, a 45-metre superyacht built entirely bespoke for a Middle East owner

Italian yard Tankoa Yachts put its newest superyacht into the water on 31 August, in Genoa: the TX450, a 45-metre boat built entirely to order. The launch brought together the owner and his family, the yard's team and the partner companies, with the traditional christening and blessing of the yacht, followed by a celebration at the yard itself.

This is not a catalogue boat. The TX450 is 100% custom, which in the industry's language means it was designed from scratch around a single client, rather than adapted from an existing model.

The brief that shaped the project

The boat was commissioned by an experienced yachtsman from the Middle East, who has owned several yachts over the years. He came to Tankoa with a specific and tricky requirement: he wanted a boat that stayed below 500 gross tons, yet delivered the volume, living areas and space distribution normally found on a much larger vessel.

Gross tonnage, measured in GT, is not weight; it is a measure of enclosed internal volume. Keeping a yacht below 500 GT matters because, in that band, operation follows simpler rules on crew and certification. The engineering challenge is exactly that: squeezing the most habitable space into a volume limit that cannot be exceeded.

That was the problem the project had to solve, and it explains the boat's configuration choices.

What fits inside 45 metres

To meet the brief, the design gained one more deck than the previous model and a wider beam, of 8.80 metres. More width and an extra deck mean more usable area without stretching the length, which is what would push the tonnage up.

The configuration is unusual for the size:

• Living areas spanning the entire upper deck
• Five cabins for up to ten guests, all on the main deck, alongside the owner's suite
• A dedicated gym and spa area
• Extra accommodation on the lower deck, including a convertible cabin that becomes another room when needed
• An enclosed veranda on the bridge deck

Bringing the owner's suite and the guest cabins together on the same main deck is a rare choice, and the kind of decision that only makes sense when the boat is designed around one owner's specific way of using it.

Hybrid: silence and a night at anchor without a generator

The TX450 uses a full hybrid propulsion system, combining conventional engines with electric motors and a battery bank. Top speed is 15 knots at half load, and cruising speed is 14 knots.

The benefit of the hybrid is not speed, but operation. The boat can run in full-electric mode for a few hours, silent and emission-free, and above all spend the entire night at anchor on batteries alone, without starting the generator.

That is the detail that changes life on board. A generator running all night means noise, vibration, fuel and maintenance, and it is the main reason anchoring on a large yacht is rarely silent. Removing it makes the night at sea quieter and cuts operating cost at the same time. The system also provides redundancy, which increases safety in the event of a failure.

Who signed the project

The exterior and interior design are by Cassetta Yacht Designers, the studio of Giorgio Cassetta, founded in Rome in 2015 and with a track record at yards including Benetti, Baglietto and Cantiere delle Marche. The interiors were conceived around the way the owner intends to use the boat, which explains the unusual configuration.

Naval architecture is by the Italian firm NAMES, and engineering by inNave, a firm based in Mestre, in the Venice area, in cooperation with Tankoa's own technical department.

The TX450 grows out of the T450 concept, the 45-metre model Tankoa presented in 2020, but it has evolved into an entirely new boat. According to the yard, the two share only the same designer. In practice, it is a different yacht: wider, with one more deck and an aesthetic of its own.

A yard that works with few clients at a time

Tankoa Yachts is based in Genoa, one of the oldest ports in Italy's naval tradition. It was founded in 2007 by Guido Orsi and delivered its first boat, the 69-metre Suerte, in 2015. It builds megayachts in steel and aluminium, today in a range from 45 to around 100 metres.

The yard describes itself as boutique and works with no more than two clients at a time. It is a choice of scale: instead of series production, it bets on a few projects with a high degree of personalisation and close follow-up. The TX450, the smallest in the range and at the same time fully custom, is a portrait of that logic.

Since 2020, Tankoa has been led by Vincenzo Poerio, an executive who came from Benetti and has restructured the company in recent years. On the launch, he summed up:

"Seeing TX450 touch the water for the first time is a rewarding milestone for everyone involved in her creation. From the very beginning, this has been a truly collaborative journey with the owner, resulting in a yacht that is entirely bespoke and reflects a shared vision brought to life through dedication, expertise and innovation."

What comes next

With the hull in the water, the TX450 enters the final phase of construction, with sea trials and technical testing ahead of delivery to the owner, planned for November 2026. The price was not disclosed, as is the rule in the bespoke-build segment.

Project specifications