Onyx Marine
Precision. Power. Prestige.
Onyx Marine brings exceptional craftsmanship and cutting-edge design to our shared vision of premium yachting. Their commitment to quality, innovation, and performance ensures that every vessel delivers an extraordinary experience — on deck and at sea.
Onyx Marine Yachts on Offer
About ONYX Marine
ONYX Marine is redefining performance on the water. From the rugged shores of South Africa — a nation renowned for producing some of the world’s finest boatbuilders — ONYX Marine crafts high-performance catamarans that combine raw power with refined precision. Backed by decades of engineering expertise, hands-on sailing knowledge, and advanced fabrication techniques, our team has meticulously designed the ONYX 10.5 to embody the perfect synergy of strength, stability, and sophistication.
Whether you’re weaving through the turquoise channels of the Greek Islands, riding Pacific swells, exploring Caribbean archipelagos, or navigating the wild beauty of African estuaries — the ONYX 10.5 offers more than just a vessel. It offers freedom. Purpose-built to perform in diverse conditions and designed for discerning adventurers, it’s your invitation to roam, discover, and command the water with confidence.
Francois van Dyk
Co-Founder
Francois’ journey into engineering and marine design began at a very young age, learning from and assisting his father in building cold-mold wooden hull boats. By his mid-teens, he was deeply involved in constructing a 40ft steel boat, “Usuthu”. He was also an accomplished sailor, representing his High school and club. After completing high school, Francois obtained both Mechanical and Electrical Engineering Diplomas at Durban Technicon (now DUT).
During his final year, he and a classmate built, sailed and sold a 34ft steel sailing boat. At 22, he designed and built a 14ft |4.27m sailing dinghy using the cold mold technique. At 23, Francois co-founded “Genman,” a diesel generator manufacturing and servicing company that operated successfully for 20 years, securing major contracts with marine and land based industrial clients, including Durban Harbour, the Navy, and Barlow’s Caterpillar-generators. From 2002 to 2004, he participated in hybrid-power research at DUT.
In 2007, Francois established a marine maintenance company operating from the Point Yacht Club Boatyard, where he undertook various boat repair and refit projects, including that of his own 33ft Ranger and own 44ft wooden sailing vessel, “Narina 1.” Francois’s expertise took him on extensive voyages as Skipper and Engineer on various vessels, covering way over 43,000 nautical miles from 2010 to 2012. He later contracted for significant projects, including the re-engineering of a 66ft | 20.12m luxury sailing catamaran, the 42 Tonnes “Dream Free”, whilst managing his boat repair company operating from Hout Bay and Simon’s Town by 2013 already.
Francois’s passion for design led to the development of the Quatro-Cat, a 12m sailing catamaran, and subsequent projects, including a 52ft|15.8m power catamaran launched in 2020. Sea-trials from Grainger bay was successful. The first 42ft sailing catamaran was completed in 2023 and it is now sailing the Mediterranean. His latest venture is with Onyx Marine. The Onyx 10.5, a new model, is set to be produced for a special niche market in the Kleinmond boatyard. Plans are to build four catamarans annually. Francois continues to innovate and build, driven by his love for the ocean and sailing.
Chris Gooding
Co-Founder
Chris is a sailor at heart, who grew up always searching for another adventure. A lover of the seas with a passionate heart, his foray into the sailing community commenced through buying his very own yacht, aptly named “buoy-tjie”.
Chris’s background in engineering and design, along with his passion for sailing, bled into one another and burst forth in the idea to design and create a unique yacht, which he would then use to sail the open seas. Various circumstances, among them being his chance meeting with Francois at the Gordon’s Bay Yacht Club, led to the two forming a friendship, and his initial plans changed.
From this initial meeting, it didn’t take long before they decided to explore the potential of designing a catamaran that they could use to cross the oceans. After the designs had been completed, and the crew had been assembled, they set-up shop in Kleinmond.
The Good 'Video' Interview
In this episode of The Good Interview, recorded on 6th Dec 2024, The Good Newspaper talked to the founders of Onyx Marine, a newly established Catamaran manufacturer.
Chris Gooding and Francois van Dyk, otherwise known quite comically as “The Old Boys On The Dock” had a chance meeting at the Gordon’s Bay Yacht club a year or so back. From there they started to discuss how the traditional model’s of Catamaran could be improved upon, along with attempting to address numerous other troubles that sea-farers face.
Get in Contact
To learn more about Onyx Marine, or to find an Onyx Marine for sale, get in touch with one of our brokers.
Our Strategic Partners
