StellarPM reveals new 26m sportfishing catamaran

StellarPM has revealed a new addition to its power catamaran series, a 26.1-metre sportfishing model named the SF2603. Hull and superstructure construction, along with the assembly and finishing, will be conducted at StellarPM's yard in Hai Phong, Vietnam.

The SF2603 was developed in collaboration with an experienced game fisherman who wanted more stability than a traditional monohull could offer.

Made of aluminium, the catamaran's high-volume, tri-deck styling is based on the shipyard's earlier StellarCAT AL2503. However, the SF2603 differentiates itself with upgraded power options, a water-level extended cockpit with reinforced soles and aft-opening hydraulic transom doors and a "tuna tower" that leads its class in terms of height-to-boat-length ratio, according to StellarPM. Naval architecture is owed to Ginton Naval Architects.

Accommodation will encompass four to seven staterooms and two to three crew cabins, depending on the configuration chosen. Interior renderings reveal minimalist, contemporary decor with glass tables and marble countertops.

An on-deck sportfishing highlight is the 44-square-metre cockpit, designed to house refrigerated fishboxes, livewells, ice and ice slush machines, bait fillet tables, rod reel and tackle storage, freezers and further storage lockers.

Other key design requirements included the means to cruise in fishing grounds found off Florida and the Caribbean, as well as more rugged terrain such as Nova Scotia. This is seen in the design's shallow, 1.48-metre draft and 2,400-nautical-mile range, with the latter achieved through flat planing hulls and an IPS drive solution that has "35 per cent higher efficiency" than inboard shafts.

Powered by twin Volvo engines, the SF2603 will be able to reach a top speed of 21 knots and a cruising speed of 19 knots. The shipyard is working on the development of a foiling solution that could bring the maximum speed up to 35 knots and above.

According to BOATPro, the first hull in StellarPM's raised-pilothouse StellarONE108 series is scheduled for July 2024.