NOS News•
Princess Beatrix sailed De Groene Draeck for the first time today since the ship was taken out of service in 2021 for maintenance. The former queen received the ship as a gift from the Dutch people for her eighteenth birthday. She was thereby promised that the maintenance of the ship would be paid for by the state.
De Groene Draeck, which has been owned by Princess Beatrix for almost 66 years, has now undergone several rounds of renovation. The costs were higher than expected.
In 2015, Prime Minister Rutte informed the House of Representatives in writing that maintenance in the years before had cost 223,000 euros more than anticipated. Former D66 leader Pechtold had expressed his surprise at the increase in annual maintenance costs from 51,000 euros to 95,000 euros. Because Rutte and Pechtold were laughing about the ship, it was decided to finalize the matter in writing.
Specialist yard
The costs and maintenance of the ship are the responsibility of the Ministry of Defence. But that no longer has the necessary knowledge and experience, writes the Royal House. The renovation was therefore carried out by a specialist shipyard.
Princess Beatrix paid the additional costs for the most recent renovation. The other costs for maintenance will remain at the expense of the Ministry of Defense, as long as the princess uses the ship. So she did that again today.
The princess sailed from Stavoren to Enkhuizen by ship, the Royal House writes on Twitter:
2023-04-22 19:51:05
#Groene #Draeck #sails #Beatrix #helm
