The charter company's project is based on innovative environmental management and energy efficiency. "We have designed a modern harbour for the next decade and adapted to the requirements in terms of efficient energy management," says John Rossbach, one of the partners in Lonja Marina Charter. With the premise of not wasting resources, but using them cleverly, the initiative applied for the concession for La Lonja Marina. With success.
More articles on the topic of sustainable marinas:
Yachts to supply energy for the harbour
A sustainable energy management system is planned that will revolutionise the use of energy in the port. Modern yachts, which are often equipped with powerful battery systems and renewable energy sources such as solar and wind power, are to become active energy suppliers for harbour operations. When the batteries are fully charged, the energy sources are no longer utilised. The idea: in future, the surplus energy from the yachts should not simply go to waste, but be fed into the harbour network to power infrastructure such as lighting, pump systems, administration buildings or charging stations for electric vehicles. The main focus is on the charter yachts of Lonja Marina Charter, which have their permanent berth here. However, guest yachts are also to be given the opportunity to feed in their surplus electricity and be charged for it. The system relies not least on cooperation between harbour operators and yacht owners. The conversion with the corresponding infrastructure is scheduled to start in autumn 2025 so as not to disrupt ongoing operations during the season with construction work.
Sustainability in marinas: model of the future?
The new energy management system is intended to significantly reduce the harbour's carbon footprint and serve as a model for the sustainable development of marinas worldwide. Together with the Palma Aquarium, the University of the Balearic Islands and many other institutions, Lonja Marina Charter says it will be working on projects in the coming years to study the flora and fauna as well as the water quality of the harbours of the Balearic Islands. The aim is to familiarise people, including schoolchildren, with sustainability using the example of the resources on board a yacht.
Lonja Marina Charter was founded in 2009 from six competing charter companies: Alboran, Cruesa, Latitud Cero, Viva Charter, ECC Charter and Yates Mallorca. According to John Rossbach, the model enables these companies to overcome their dependence on other marinas and optimise their resources, which should benefit both the companies and their customers.
Jill Grigoleit
Editor Travel
Jill Grigoleit was born in Hanover in 1985. An early childhood memory is the large collection of YACHT and SURF magazines from her sailing and surfing enthusiast father. However, growing up in a small Swabian village on the Neckar, she had less to do with water sports in her childhood, apart from a few trips to the Baltic Sea with her family. After studying journalism in Bremen and Hanover, she went into television for a few years. Through a few lucky coincidences, she ended up on the water in 2011 and then returned to the written word professionally. For over ten years, she lived with her family on a houseboat in their own harbor south of Hamburg and wrote a book about houseboat building and life with children on the water. Since 2020, she has mainly been writing travel reports and features about people who live and work on and near the water for BOOTE. She has been a permanent member of the Delius Klasing water sports editorial team since January 2024.
