‘I have a hard time understanding this’

A Redditor has reignited the debate over wealth inequality and the environmentally destructive behavior of the ultrawealthy after sharing an image of a virtually brand-new superyacht online.

Posting to the r/yachtporn subreddit, the Redditor showed a photo of what appeared to be the characteristically darkly colored Luminance.

At over 138 meters (455 feet), the floating palace is the length of one-and-a-half football fields. Delivered in 2024, Luminance includes 20 cabins and can host up to 40 guests, while also housing as many as 24 crew members, per YachtCharterFleet.

Among its many amenities, Luminance features a teak deck, a beauty salon, an elevator, a helipad, and a swimming pool, according to YachtBuyer.

While some Redditors were impressed by the megayacht’s over-the-top luxury, others expressed dismay at what the vessel’s existence revealed about the state of the world.

“I have a hard time understanding this amount of wealth,” said one commenter.

“Just another hoarder,” another Redditor added dismissively.

Luminance is owned by Rinat Akhmetov, who, with a net worth of nearly $9 billion, is Ukraine’s richest man, according to Forbes.

Like many yacht-owning billionaires, Akhmetov made much of his vast fortune selling planet-heating, nonrenewable, extracted fuels.

“The son of a coal miner, Akhmetov got his start buying up mining assets during the 90s privatization era,” said Forbes. Later, Akhmetov became heavily invested in steel operations, as well.

Akhmetov’s fellow Ukrainians have experienced great suffering and hardship since Russia invaded their country in February 2022, with a reported 500 of Akhmetov’s employees having been killed during the war, according to Forbes.

However, as Luminance has demonstrated, the war has not stopped Akhmetov from continuing to live the extravagant lifestyle of a global elite. The vessel cost Akhmetov roughly $500 million to build, per Forbes.

In addition to being a symbol of vast wealth inequality, the original poster’s photo of Luminance also served as a reminder of the incredible toll that the lifestyles of the superrich take on the environment.

According to a report by Oxfam, in a single year, one megayacht produces as much planet-heating pollution as the average person would generate in 860 years.

One Redditor summed up the sentiments of many, commenting, “Humanity is broken if we accept that some are allowed to be this rich, while the vast majority suffer to just get by.”

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