Australia’s largest marina network deepens its support for a strong, active and well-resourced industry association.
The Marina Industries Association (MIA) today announced that d’Albora Marinas Group has taken up Gold Sponsorship of the association.
The commitment signals d’Albora Marinas Group’s support for the MIA’s work as the peak body for the marina industries across Australia, Asia and the Pacific, and reflects the group’s growing engagement in the broader industry — from professional training and accreditation through to environmental best practice and industry research.
d’Albora Marinas has expanded rapidly since being acquired by MA Financial Group in April 2023. What began as a ten-marina portfolio has grown to 17 locations across Queensland, New South Wales and Victoria, following a sustained program of acquisition and capital investment.
Recent additions include Tin Can Bay Marina on the Great Sandy Strait, with 172 wet berths, a full-service boatyard and fuel facilities; East Coast Marina in Manly, Brisbane; and Gold Coast City Marina & Shipyard, one of the Asia-Pacific’s best-known refit and superyacht service facilities, which settled in May 2026. In February 2026, the group also acquired GoBoat Australia, the electric picnic-boat operator, extending d’Albora’s reach into accessible, low-emission boating experiences across seven destinations.
Alongside acquisitions, d’Albora is investing in existing assets. At d’Albora Pacific Point Marina & Boatyard on the Gold Coast, 54 new berths have been delivered, and a second stage has planning approval, including a 14,000 square metre commercial marine precinct with new work sheds, office space, additional wet berths and expanded dry storage. At full build-out the site is planned to serve more than 1,400 berthing customers.
Brad Couper, Head of Alternative Real Estate MA Financial Group, said the sponsorship reflected a deliberate view about the role industry associations play in a maturing sector.
“A strong industry needs a strong association behind it. Associations like the MIA do the work that no single operator can do alone — setting standards, building the skills base, gathering credible data and speaking for the sector when it matters. As an investor in Australian marine infrastructure, we have a direct interest in the industry being well organised, well-regulated and well understood. Supporting the MIA at Gold level is a straightforward way to help make sure that capability is properly resourced for the long term.”
d’Albora Marinas Managing Director Julien Pouteau said the group’s decision was grounded in the practical value its teams draw from MIA programs, events and industry data.
“The MIA’s training, best practice guidance and operational support are important tools in the day-to-day running of marinas. Many of our team have benefited from MIA training, including the Intermediate and Advanced Marina Management programs, and several of our managers hold globally recognised certification through the Global Marina Institute, of which the MIA is a founding member. That gives industry a common language and a common standard across very different sites. The MIA also brings the industry together. Its events, conferences and networking create the forums where important industry discussions happen — where operators, suppliers and regulators are in the same room working through the issues facing the sector. It is also important to have a body like the MIA collecting data from across the industry. Credible, industry-wide data demonstrates the value the marina sector delivers and validates the claims the industry makes when advocating on behalf of members. Gold Sponsorship is our way of putting something back into programs our people and our marinas rely on.”
MIA Chief Executive Officer Suzanne Davies welcomed the commitment.
“We are delighted to welcome d’Albora Marinas Group as a Gold Sponsor. d’Albora has been an active participant in MIA training and accreditation for many years, so this is a natural deepening of a long relationship rather than a new one. Support at this level allows us to keep investing in the things members tell us matter most — workforce development, accredited training pathways, the Gold Anchor and Clean Marina programs, and the research that helps our industry make its case to government. When a group of d’Albora’s scale steps forward in this way, it sends a clear signal about the value of a well-resourced, professional industry body.”
d’Albora joins the MIA’s group of Sponsors and Partners supporting the association’s mission to develop and support sustainable marina industries through leadership, guidance, education, accreditation and research across the Australian, Asian and Pacific marina sectors.
For more information, visit www.marinas.net.au and www.dalbora.com.au
