La Bajadilla marina

New 200m euro plan to transform Marbella port unveiled 15 years after Al-Thani saga

Local business consortium takes over La Bajadilla marina expansion with 750 berths, cruise terminal and 40-year concession

Añádenos en Google

The Mayor of Marbella and the Regional Minister for Public Works at the port of La Bajadilla. (García)

José Carlos García

Marbella

03/09/2026 a las 16:44h.

La Bajadilla marina

€200m overhaul: Marina Internacional de Marbella takes over La Bajadilla with a 40-year concession, ending the 15-year Al-Thani dispute.
Expanded capacity: Water area grows 3.5-fold, tripling berths from 268 to 750 to accommodate cruise ships and mega-yachts.
New facilities: Features a 1.13 km main breakwater, commercial zone, 1,000-space car park and relocated fishing port.
Key timeline: Management transfers on 1 January 2027, with 11 months for final design and 36 months for construction.

Fifteen years after the Andalusian regional government awarded the expansion of Marbella's La Bajadilla marina to Qatari Sheikh Abdullah bin Nasser Al-Thani, the ... long-running saga has finally been resolved with a massive 200-million-euro redevelopment plan.

The project will be led by Marina Internacional de Marbella, a joint venture of business leaders from Malaga and the Costa del Sol. The group was the runner-up in the original November 2010 tender before Al-Thani's award was formally annulled following years of inaction, legal disputes and financial defaults.

It will have 750 berths, the capacity to accommodate large yachts and cruise ships, a new fishing port and a car park with 1,000 spaces

The announcement was made during a visit to Marbella by Mario Muñoz-Atanet, the newly appointed Andalusian regional minister for development and mobility, alongside the head of the Andalusian Public Ports Agency (APPA), Ignacio Álvarez-Ossorio Ramos, and Marbella Mayor Ángeles Muñoz.

- Marbella bids farewell to Sheikh Al-Thani 15 years after failed €84m port expansion
José Carlos García

"It is going to be a brand-new marina," Álvarez-Ossorio told SUR, while Mayor Muñoz hailed the development as "absolutely brilliant news for Marbella".

"A strategic initiative"

Under the 40-year concession, which was formally awarded on 1 September, the port's water area will expand to three and a half times its current size. The number of berths will triple from 268 to approximately 750, enabling the facility to accommodate large luxury yachts and cruise ships.

The transformation includes constructing a 1.13-kilometre southern breakwater, a 450-metre western breakwater and a new jetty to channel the Primero stream.

The existing fishing port will be retained within the complex but relocated to the far western side. The wider redevelopment also features a new commercial zone and a 1,000-space car park.

Muñoz-Atanet revealed that regional authorities have been quietly clearing complex administrative, legal, environmental and coastal permissions since 2019 without public leaks.

The councillor and the regional minister are speaking with the regional representative, the councillor for Public Works and the director-general of the Ports of Andalusia agency. (J. C. García)

The successful joint venture will take over management on 1 January 2027. The group will have 11 months to draft the final technical project and 36 months to complete construction work.

Port operations, including existing berth management and fishing activities, will remain fully open throughout the construction phase.

Describing the project as a strategic initiative to revitalise regional port facilities, Muñoz-Atanet said the multi-million-euro investment would meet surging maritime demand and provide a major economic boost for Marbella.