'Soliloquy' the last word on green yachting

A visiting London yacht designer has given Abu Dhabi a glimpse of how far its horizons as an international boating centre can stretch. Alastair Callender, 24, was at the Abu Dhabi Yacht Show at Yas Marina yesterday looking for a client to help him realise his dream - a £50 million (Dh280.9m) solar-powered, zero-emission superyacht, Soliloquy, which is still at the concept stage and awaiting development.

"We're looking for a client to take it from a concept to a reality," Mr Callender said, adding that he had spoken to some high-net-worth individuals about the project. Abu Dhabi was an appropriate place to seek an investor for two reasons, he said. First, Mr Callender said the clean, green craft was inspired by Masdar City, Abu Dhabi's carbon-neutral development being built at the edge of the capital.

Second, Abu Dhabi is planning to spend billions of dirhams in building dozens of new marinas as part of a plan to become an international centre for boating, as spelled out in Plan Abu Dhabi 2030. The capital will eventually have 45 marinas of various sizes to capitalise on its 200 natural islands and vast stretches of coastline, the Abu Dhabi Tourism Authority (ADTA) said at the opening of the city's annual yacht show yesterday.

There are now about 1,600 berths in the emirate's six marinas. High-end marinas typically cost Dh120,000 a berth to develop, while some superyacht berths cost as much Dh300,000, according to Septech, the Dubai-based company that built Yas Marina and handles marine projects throughout the GCC. But one local boat builder said that without the billions in investment for the new marinas, the capital could not fulfil its vision as an international destination for pleasure craft.

"The sales in Abu Dhabi are limited because of a lack of infrastructure at this point," said Hamad Bachi, the chief executive of Emocean Marine, a shipwright based in Abu Dhabi. "There aren't enough marinas." The emirate's Tourism Development and Investment Company (TDIC) yesterday unveiled its two marina developments for Saadiyat Island at the yacht show. The Saadiyat Marina, which will be the commercial centre of the island, will include more than 1,000 berths and be home to about 80,000 residents.

Aldar Marinas plans to build 3,500 yacht berths in 14 marinas in Abu Dhabi. In the future there could be as many as 10,000 leisure boats in the emirate, the ADTA predicts. "We are promoting marina projects to attract more tourists," said Mahra Khalid al Qassimi, the senior communications manager for Abu Dhabi Projects at TDIC. [e-mail]