2022 November December Marina World

SUPERYACHT FACILITIES
believes is stunting the industry’s
growth. “There are no marinas able
to handle a 100m [330ft] yacht
and very few berths for boats of
even 80m [262ft] on the entire east
coast,” he explains. “The market
desperately needs our marina and
could have used five more marinas
like ours, but there is simply no
space to build them. Environmental
regulations make it very hard,” he
adds.
Seclusion and luxury
in the Bahamas
Plans to develop a luxury superyacht-focused marina on the southern tip of
the island of Abaco in the Bahamas are in the final design stage, with a grand
opening anticipated in 2026. Charlotte Niemiec reports
The exclusive resort community of
Porto Habacoa is set to offer the best
of both land and sea, from hiking trails
that meander through the island’s
National Park to marine life comprising
multiple species of whales, dolphins
and bonefish.
When complete, the marina will offer
136 berths on floating pontoons to
accommodate boats ranging in size
from 45-220m (148-722ft). Each berth
will be configured to handle more
than one boat, allowing the marina to
accommodate either 372 regular sized
boats or 136 superyachts in total, or a
mixture of the two.
Mastermind behind the project,
developer and CEO Ra’anan Ben-
Zur, has spent four years navigating
complex regulations and lining up
strategic partners to ensure the
success of the project. “We’ve now
obtained all the government approvals
for the project, including getting the
certificate of environmental clearance,
without which one cannot break
ground,” he says. “It was hard to get – it
took years and lots of work and study,
but we have it. In addition, both the
government of the Bahamas and the
local community government are very
supportive of our project. So, other than
the usual construction-related issues
that are always there but are not major,
we are in good shape. We expect to
finalise detailed planning and design
during 2023, start construction in early
2024 and be operational in early 2026.”
When complete, the marina is
expected to help fill a large hole for
superyacht owners in North America,
according to Ben-Zur. “While I’m not
an expert, I’ve studied the superyacht
industry intensely over the last few
years, which is growing significantly
both in terms of numbers and sizes.”
But on the US east coast, a lack of
marina space for superyachts has
reached critical levels, which he
Superyacht focus
Ben-Zur is acutely aware that
superyachts have very different
needs to those of regular sized
boats, particularly when it comes to
marina size, depth and the facilities on
offer. For this reason, Porto Habacoa
is designed from the ground up with
superyachts in mind. Other marinas
in the area are much smaller and, in
most cases, not as deep, Ben-Zur
explains. They can only service a few
superyachts at a time and are limited in
size to about 80m (262ft), with very few
exceptions that go up to 90m (295ft).
These marinas generally have very
high occupancy and some reach 100%
all year round.
To combat difficulty for large vessels
struggling to fit into inadequate berth
space, Habacoa Marina will be huge,
with 44ha (109 acres) of actual
basin. “Theoretically, a 200m [656ft]
superyacht could come in and simply
reverse into its berth in one simple
manoeuvre,” Ben-Zur says. The marina
will also have a depth of 8m (26ft) at
the entry canal and a 5.5m (18ft) basin,
unlike any other Bahamian marina.
This will provide important flexibility for
yachts as it allows them to come and
go at low or high tide. “Additionally,
we will have a massive procurement
Above: CGI of the superyacht-focused
Porto Habacoa marina.
Right: View from a canalside home with its
stunning infinity pool.
www.marinaworld.com – November/December 2022 21