WATERFRONT DEVELOPMENTS has a 25 year management concession. The waterspace, planned by Artelia, led to contracts being awarded to Dutch company Orsta and Italian firm Ingemar. Orsta built the outer floating breakwater and a 200m (656ft) long inner breakwater of concrete and local rock. This protects an Ingemar floating marina system with four piers. “We were commissioned to supply mooring equipment, footbridges and piers; a total of 512m [1,680ft] of pier and four bridges,” Ingemar founder and CEO, Lorenzo Isalberti explains. The project was an excellent addition to Ingemar’s portfolio in Malta, which includes the provision of floating docks for Msida Marina – first a doubling up and then, this year, an extension – installations at Mgarr on the Maltese island of Gozo and equipment for the Marsaxlokk fishing port. Niki Travers Tauss, who led the project on behalf of Marina di Valletta Ltd, is managing director of Esprit Yachting Sales, Service & Charter and oversees the Maltese Flag yacht ownership structure. He answers specific questions: Q: Has public money been included in the investment? A: No. It’s all been financed by Azimut- Benetti and the consortium of Maltese investors. Q: Will the marina be completely finished in August? A: We had a soft launch in early June by opening two pontoons with power and water, opened two more at the end of June and opened the car parks. In November, construction begins on the building that will be home to the club house, offices, Azimut-Benetti’s sales outlet and a cafeteria bar with terrace. Q: Have berths already been allocated? A: There is a lot of interest. We prefer to rent berths out annually or on even shorter leases but there are also 90 berths for 10 to 20 year leases. Annual berths are for vessels of 18 to 30m (59 to 98ft). We have a dozen visitor berths and on the outer part of the breakwater there is 120m (394ft) of space for yachts above 24m (79ft) and at least two spaces for vessels of around 40m (131ft). Q: Do you have sufficient fuel facilities and shoreside power to support vessels above 40m (131ft)? A: The pier has been designed for vessels of this length and the distributor is alongside. Trucks can get very close to yachts for supplies. Laguna Marina is a recently completed motorboat mooring facility at the heart of Valletta’s seafront. The power pedestals have been selected to give the correct power. We do not have boat hoists or cranes because these services are available elsewhere on the island. Q: Care of the environment is becoming more and more important. What are you doing specifically in this area? A: We are the first marina in Malta to have in-slip pump-out and we are very much respecting the history of the site in terms of our aesthetics. There will be gardens on the promenade and electric scooters are available to our customers. Ing. Marco de Paolis, director of marina development and property for Azimut- Benetti, picks up: Q: Why build a marina in Malta? A: Esprit Yachting, of which Niki and his father are the main partners, are our dealers in Malta and we have a relationship of trust. We have long cultivated the idea of creating a marina as a business proposition as the demand for moorings is always increasing and it’s an important support for commercial activities. The marina gives us the chance to offer new customers a guaranteed berth from the day after purchase. Marina di Valletta has a system of Ingemar floating piers within a sheltered basin protected by an Orsta outer floating breakwater. 28 www.marinaworld.com - July/August 2017
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