Wally could never be accused of holding back when it comes to ground breaking design and in their recently announced joint venture with fashion house Hermes they have once again excelled themselves with the unveiling of the extraordinary WHY 58X38 project.

The numbers refer to the overall length (58m) and beam (38m) of an enormous delta-shaped yacht which Wally claim will demonstrate a reduction in fuel consumption of up to 30 per cent a year for propulsion and up to 50 per cent for generation. That could equate to up to 200 tons of diesel saved a year.

Wally’s association with Hermes began when Wally boss Luca Bassani approached them with a view to styling a yacht. Pierre Alexis-Dumas of Hermes was impressed with the Wally ethos of boundary breaking design and in conjunction with interior architect Denis Montel they have come up with this.

Unlike the Wallypower which ignored fuel consumption in the days of spend, spend, spend, the WHY project is about modest speeds and low consumption, using solar energy ‘gathered’ through photovoltaic panels set in the sliding ‘roof’ and recovering ‘lost’ thermal energy from the engines. How things change.
Despite what looks like a distinctly futuristic design, the naval architecture is based on a concept which has been around for more than ten years and ironically comes from the rough, tough world of offshore oil extraction.

The Norwegian Ramform hull design is characterised by exceptional and unprecedented stability negating any need for stabilisers. “Space is the greatest luxury on the sea,” said Monsieur Dumas at the WHY concept recent launch and there is no doubt that this vast vessel which also boasts massive volume below the waterline, will provide more space than most interior designers will know what to do with – 3400m2, a third of a hectare or almost an acre – equates to the size of a small hotel!