As a long-time catamaran dealer I've been surprised that no noteworthy production of power catamarans has been coming out of Asia. The success of monohull power cruisers built there (Nordhavn, Grand Banks, Selene, Symbol, etc.) has proven that you can get quality construction with excellent joinery work. So, I could agree with Tim Askins' estimate that to replace the 2001, 56' Tennant power cat could run about $2M (U.S.). Certainly at least $1.7M But an Asian alternative now seems about to happen. Mr. J. Tse (a graduate of Harvard and MIT who made his inital bankroll via modern airplane construction), has begun producing a 55' power cat (with a 65-footer in the wings) in Thailand/China. The first 55' will launch in April/May of 2007. Until that launches it's impossible to comment definitively on the quality of construction. But the early drawings, specs and construction photos I've seen look promising. What's especially startling is the price. A basic 4-cabin model, modestly fitted out (in order to provide a charter model that will provide a good R.O.I. to its owner), is supposed to run for as little as about $675K. And a luxury model, with additional cabin space forward (similar to the Tennant 56-footer) for an owner's suite, thus providing 5 ensuite-cabins, plus ALL equipment (electronics, genset, all appliances, heat & AC, even monogrammed linens) will be priced at $850K to $890K. That's a 50% to 60% savings compared to the same cat if built in North America. Of course, the key to these savings is that a builder in the U.S. has to figure about $19 per hour (incl. FICA, insurance, etc.) per each basic worker (and about $25 p/h for managers/overseers/foremen)...whereas the Asian-built yachts can get their basic work force for as little as $1 per hour. For a labor-intensive project such as building a 50' or 60' yacht (with perhaps 15,000 or more man-hours of labor), that adds up to BIG savings. A wrinkle may be on the horizon as regards that. The talk I've heard with increasing frequency from international economists over the past year is that China will likely revalue their currency (against the U.S. dollar) within the next year or so. But the predicted change isn't expected to be that dramatic, and the Asian labor rate would continue to be substantially lower than in the U.S. Another consideration, of course, is the shipping rate. Ten years ago I could ship a 45' x 23' catamaran from Europe to the US west coast for $22K. Today it costs about $55K. Meanwhile, so many ships are bringing goods from Asia/China to the U.S. these days that booking space on a freighter for a catamaran is no small expense. (about $50K to $60K for 50' cat.) However, if Asian production savings are $500K to $700K, a $50K or $60K shipping bill still leaves a buyer well ahead, price wise. The reduced-labor-rate situation is beginning to make itself known among other new multihull productions. Multihull designer Kurt Hughes tells me he has a new (sailing) model being built in Tunisia (North Africa). And the new PCM-33 power cat is yet another catamaran coming out of the increasingly active "free-trade" region in Turkey. (I think that may be the same area in which Ted Hood's power cats are being built, though I'm not sure on that point.) The PCM-33 is trying to make a go of it with pricing substantially lower than the leading French- and North American-built power cats in that same size range. Conversely, the increasing devaluation of the U.S. dollar is helping U.S builders, too. I was speaking with Sue Smith at Performance Cruising yesterday (builders of the Gemini catmaran, 10th-largest sailboat manufacturer in the U.S.). Their 34' Gemini cat has become a noteworthy sales success in the U.K. as the British pound has strengthened against the US dollar to an almost a 2:1 currency-exchange-rate ratio. That means that Brits, armed with a strong pound, can buy U.S. products for increasingly fewer British pounds. I would imagine this could be good news for North American power-cat builders (Manata, Endeavor, PDQ, etc.) seeking to sell their cats in the UK. Smooth Seas, Rod Gibbons Cruising Cats USA.