Australian shipyard and marina facility The Boat Works has expanded, doubling in size to 54 acres (218,530 square metres). The yard will welcome the first superyachts to its new facility later on this year.
It is anticipated that the new superyacht yard, with private investment of over $100m, will generate thousands of jobs in the marine and service industries.
Tony Longhurst, The Boat Works owner, commented, “We are committed to maintaining the health of our waterways, to operating sustainably and with minimal impact on the environment.
“The innovations we have implemented throughout the existing facility and the new superyacht yard are testament to our aim of minimal impact, and in fact improving water quality.”
The Longhursts are one of south-east Queensland’s pioneer families, investing in Coomera for 40 years – with the past 20 years focused on the Gold Coast Marine Precinct.
Carolyn Rose, Tony’s sister and qualified ecologist/environmental scientist, added, “The Boat Works have taken a multi-pronged approach in terms of air, water and soil to being custodians of this site making it better than when we arrived.
“To reduce our carbon emissions, we have installed a 100kW solar panel system in the south yard with a similar system to be installed in the superyacht yard. We acknowledge the benefits that mangroves can do to protect the shoreline and encourage them to establish by installing walkways to the marinas, which slow the effect of boat wash down and protect the banks from soil erosion.
“To protect the river, The Boat Works has rainwater tanks and has installed stainless steel grates to catch debris, along with water filtration, wastewater recycling and bio-garden systems to improve water quality.”