Wellington, March 16 NZPA - One of the world's most expensive and luxurious superyachts is in Wellington.

La Masquerade arrived at the weekend and enjoyed Wellington on a good day on Sunday.

The 55m motor yacht is owned by English industrialist Sir Robert Ogden, 72.

It was built in 2003 and has a draft of 3.10m and beam of 9.6m. Australian media reported the yacht was worth $A94 ($NZ119) million.

Superyachts are not seen in Wellington harbour as often as in Auckland and they often anchor in the harbour. La Masquerade is moored at Queens Wharf.

The yacht is tracked by enthusiasts around the world. It is reported to be on a lengthy world tour and will head for the South Pacific after New Zealand.

Sir Robert, the son of a builder from Bradford, is the eldest of six children and was sent off at 15 to work on a farm, according to a profile in The Guardian newspaper in 2002. He is described as a proud Yorkshireman.

The Sunday Times rich list said he sold his coal washing and processing business for STG24.5 million and is worth STG135 million.

His interests include horse racing and charitable work. His charitable work includes providing scholarships for young people from former mining towns to go to university and cancer research. In business, he is credited with seeing the potential of the Docklands area in London.

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