KUALA LUMPUR, April 3 — The government could drop the asking price for the Equanimity superyacht seized from Low Taek Jho to US$100 million or less than half its US$250 million (RM1.42 billion) value when new, according to one source.
The person said new bids have come in for the vessel but some were as low as US$80 million and none higher than US$100 million, The Star reported.
“They know the government wants to dispose of the vessel as soon as possible due to its high maintenance cost,” the source was quoted as saying.
In December last year, the government reportedly set US$130 million as the yacht’s selling price but has yet to find a buyer.
On March 28, Finance Minister Lim Guan Eng told Parliament the government will have spent an estimated RM14.2 million by the month’s end to house the Equanimity.
Now docked in Langkawi, Kedah, the yacht is believed to belong to fugitive financier Low, also known as Jho Low, and bought with funds allegedly misappropriated from the 1Malaysia Development Berhad.
The vessel was seized on the coast of Bali, Indonesian by maritime authorities last year on the request of US authorities as part of corruption investigations by its Department of Justice into 1MDB.
