Puteri Harbour Opens

The Malaysian state of Johor decided on an ambitious scheme to supercharge its capital and is building an impressive set of infrastructure – including the sharp new marina at Puteri Harbour

As you drive north out of Singapore into neighboring Johor State of Malaysia, there are two connecting bridges that span the Johor Strait, which divides Singapore Island from the Malay Peninsula. One has been the standard link that runs up to Kuala Lumpur. But a new link has been added in recent years, which runs from Singapore into the heart of the Iskandar Malaysia project, an enormous property development that is, in effect, the birth of a brand new port city right next to Singapore.

The project, which was named after Sultan Iskandar of Johor, encompasses roughly 2,200 square kilometres and incorporates the old state capital of Johor Bahru, as well as smaller towns nestled along the strait. Iskandar Malaysia consists of a port complex, a luxury-living community, government offices, the new offices of Johor’s Sultan (very impressive) as well as industrial complexes and space for research in medicine, the creative arts and finance. A new university and international airport round out the facilities. It is a very ambitious plan, and the clear hope is to supplant Singapore in numerous fields. Already, Evergreen and Maersk have moved their shipping operations to the new port complex at Pelapas. Funding for the project is a combination of Malaysian state capital and interests from the Middle East.

More importantly for boaters in Singapore, there is a new marina option for mooring up that’s just up the way from Raffles Marina, and for rates that are roughly half that of Singapore’s marinas. A big part of the luxury living development, located in a part of the overall project known as Puteri Harbour, Nusanjaya, is providing a connection to the water in the form of three sets of berths, plus housing units, each of which will have its own slipway.

Most of the plan remains on the drawing board, though the first of the marinas – a public marina – is now open for business. With 80 berths, the public marina has been built to exceptional standard and features some eye-catching design thanks to the work of Singapore-based Prometheus Marine and Canadian pontoon builder StructurMarine. The marina is very well-protected inside man-made basins. As the Puteri Harbour project is situated along a relatively narrow portion of the Straits of Johor, boaters can enjoy easy access to the Malacca Strait and points around Malaysia, as well as very good protection from the elements.