Phinisi for sale and custom phinisi commissioning

Phinisi for sale in Raja Ampat are Sulawesi-built ironwood hulls finished for guest or private use, usually 25 to 50 metres. The desk brokers completed vessels, represents buyers through survey and structuring, and acts as liaison when an owner prefers to commission a new hull with a Bira or Tana Beru yard.

Two routes to a phinisi

1. Buy a completed vessel

A used phinisi already has a hull you can survey, an interior you can walk through and, if it has been working, an operating record you can read. The risks are concentrated in the timber: fastenings, frames, keel and sheathing, plus whatever the previous owner did or did not document. Value moves sharply on survey outcome, so the sequence is always inspection first, negotiation second.

2. Commission a new build

Commissioning is a construction contract, not a brokerage one, and it belongs with the yards. Our role is liaison: framing the specification, sanity-checking the payment schedule against build milestones, and introducing the buyer to yards that build this type as their core work — commission a new Bira phinisi or the Tana Beru boat-building yards. Construction, repair and refit contracts in the ecosystem are issued by PT Komodo Galangan Nusantara, not by this brokerage.

What to inspect on an ironwood hull

• Fastenings and frames. The single most expensive thing to get wrong, and the hardest to see from a photograph.
• Keel, garboard and stern gear. Where age shows first on a working charter hull.
• Sheathing and caulking history. How recently, by whom, and with what.
• Deck and superstructure timber. Guest-facing surfaces drive both survey cost and guest reviews.
• Rig and sails. On most working phinisi the rig is presentational; confirm whether it is functional and insured as such.
• Machinery and systems. Main engine, generators, watermaker, air-conditioning load against cabin count.
• Documentation. Build records, ownership chain, class or statutory status, and permits if it has carried guests.

An independent surveyor should sign this off, not the seller and not the broker. See the due diligence brief.

Phinisi as a charter asset

Most phinisi in Raja Ampat earn as guest vessels. If you intend to trade the boat rather than cruise it privately, price it as a business: berths, season length, agent mix and the cost of the crew who make a wooden vessel work. Compare against the steel liveaboard case on the liveaboards page, and read charter businesses for sale if you would rather acquire an operation with its bookings intact.

Southern Raja Ampat phinisi work is concentrated around Misool. Buyers looking at phinisi stock outside Papua can also review more phinisi for sale across Indonesia.

Frequently asked questions

Is it better to buy a used phinisi or commission a new one?

Buying gives you a known hull, a known survey result and immediate earning capacity. Commissioning gives you exact layout and new timber, at the cost of a build period and construction risk. Buyers who need a season now buy; buyers building a brand around a specific product commission.

How long does a new phinisi take to build?

Sulawesi builds are quoted in seasons rather than weeks, and the honest range depends on length, interior specification and how the payment schedule is structured. The yards, not a broker, should give you that timetable in writing before any deposit.

Can a wooden phinisi be classed?

Traditional ironwood hulls can be brought into a classification and statutory framework, but it is a documented process involving scantling records, survey and often remedial work. Treat an unclassed hull and a classed hull as two different assets with two different prices.