In reply to MJ
I would caution against this.
Tim Stern has not a good track record. I read all the papers about him in german and he is a bigmouth, and he does not have the money or connections to pull this off. This is gonna be a slow rugpull!

He didnt show up at Liberty in our lifetime 2024 and he has no backing from the usual players.

And obviously Venezuela would kill/expropriate every single person in this programme, once it gets too successfull.

In reply to MJ
I would caution against this.
Tim Stern has not a good track record. I read all the papers about him in german and he is a bigmouth, and he does not have the money or connections to pull this off. This is gonna be a slow rugpull!

He didnt show up at Liberty in our lifetime 2024 and he has no backing from the usual players.

And obviously Venezuela would kill/expropriate every single person in this programme, once it gets too successfull.

In reply to AndrewP
So, I have been living back on the water since July. It has been pleasant to be back in the water. Much nicer surroundings and peaceful life up to a point.
I say peaceful up to a point because I am surrounded by water, birds and nature which is lovely, but we are also on continual 'noise watch' - squeaking and banging fenders and ropes as well as surge motion of the boat under certain conditions.
I am paying more than I want in marina fees and I am at a relatively cheap place. I do not resent the cost structure as it is totally justified for the services that have to be maintained at a serviced marina facility.
In fact bearing in mind the number of employees that have to be paid and equipment that has to be financed and maintained I feel I am probably getting by very easy with my current fees/rent.
However, long term, a continual rent for the rest of my life is not exactly what I had in mind for moving on a boat.

I think the biggest thing on my mind is that it is the middle of December and we have already had 2 very fierce storms pass through the UK.
The local weather station has recorded 65 knots of wind gust during the first one and 75 knots of wind gusts during the second one.
The wind direction was totally different in both. Where I am I have been used to the idea that strong winds usually come from the south, and thus we have a land mass that shields us from those winds.
But the latest one came predominantly from the west and even north west. Sometimes we have strong easterly winds as well, and those are the ones where my current marina is not that sheltered at all.
All this to say that in places that encounter severe weather (which is basically anywhere outside the 5 degree equatorial zone) it seems to me there is no way to live on the open water permanently without relying on some sort of sheltering structures, or being up on stilts/poles, or possibly moving in to shelter when the weather is forecast to be bad, or for certain parts of the year.

Possibly having some cheap floating breakwaters would be enough? Floating water filled sacks or heavyish floating/barge structures? And having a few lines of them rather than just relying on a single line of wave protection.

One amazing thing in our favour at the moment is that the price of solar panels seems to have collapsed. I am now seeing 435 watt panels retailing for £70 here in the UK.
So if we had floating banks of excess solar panels basically we could supply power enough for most things possibly even during a good deal of the northern winter, and a generator could be economically feasible for the days of the year when the solar panels and batteries don't keep up. Possibly wind generators, but they are costly, high maintenance and cannot be relied on for power when you need it. So, solar and generator seems a more sensible off-grid arrangement to me.

But in a marina environment it costs too much to think about the rent on floating banks of solar panels, and out in the open storm-prone waters we would need wave break shelters for them.
Anyhow, those are current thoughts on the aquatic lifestyle from me.

In reply to Red Fuchs
that's the reason why SWATH and floating deep water structurers are exciting for me. These are not only more storm resistant but also more comfortable to live on.

In reply to MJ
I was literally in the room when they announced that he would not show.

If he did anyway, i apologize for this. 🙏

By the rest i stand. Venezuela is a bad choice and SEZ are not the solution.

In reply to Mason
I like the concept of a SWATH but in practice they seem much more complex and expensive than catamarans. I suppose if you want to anchor out in northern waters it may make sense but is it worth it in the Mediterranean, Caribbean, or South East Asia regions?

In reply to Red Fuchs
for those who don't know the roseninsel was a project of a free spirit who wanted his ‘peace’

In reply to Red Fuchs
Everyone says that would you like to list your points as to why they are more complex?

and yes I agree with you; in the direction away from 0 degrees latitude to the geopolises, storms are increasing, so swaths and plateaus can be found there, see e.g. offshore oil production in the north

https://www.google.com/url?sa=i&url=https%3A%2F%2Fen.wikipedia.org%2Fwiki%2FRP_FLIP&psig=AOvVaw1x36D-wiMzB2dKrXdCQOkE&ust=1734698910863000&source=images&cd=vfe&opi=89978449&ved=0CBcQjhxqFwoTCIizkpXvs4oDFQAAAAAdAAAAABAE

In reply to Mason
The physics of the shape necessitates smaller members supporting the pontoons and thus better reinforcement. As well, it makes accessing things in the hulls more difficult due to the small access points.

In reply to Red Fuchs
yep for small units a change mode would be good which allows the pontoons to be folded up so that they go into flat ride mode or for minor maintenance.

alternatively, a mast with weights and lifting devices (pontoons) could also be foldable
i.e. for smaller units i go in the direction of...

In reply to Mason
A transforming vessel is even more complex than a standard SWATH