Supporting resilient marina master planning

Port Denarau Marina Metocean Investigations

We were engaged to undertake coastal processes investigations to support the master planning of Port Denarau Marina, located on the northwest coast of Viti Levu in the Fiji Archipelago. Port Denarau is a major South Pacific superyacht destination, with the master plan proposing additional superyacht and yacht berths, dredged approach channels, and expansion of the existing marina basin.

Our role was to establish metocean design criteria—including wind, wave, current, and water level conditions—to inform marina layout, berth orientation, and the design requirements for marine infrastructure. The study was undertaken in a complex coastal environment characterised by fringing reefs, barrier reef systems, islands, dredged channels, and a large marina basin.

A key challenge for the project was the absence of long-term local metocean measurements. To address this, our team applied a multi-model assessment approach that combined long-term offshore wave hindcast simulations, regional cyclone hindcasts, non-hydrostatic wave penetration modelling, and local wind-wave growth assessment within the marina basin. This approach enabled representation of sea states associated with persistent trade winds, severe tropical cyclones, and long-period swell propagating from mid to high latitudes in the Southern Ocean.

The investigations demonstrated that the combined wave climate within the marina exceeded the performance thresholds of the initially proposed wave screen. As a result, a full-depth breakwater was recommended to provide a sheltered environment suitable for recreational and commercial vessel berthing.

This project informed berth orientation relative to prevailing and extreme wave conditions, supported the design of pontoons, gangways, and access structures, and improved understanding of cyclone risk at the site—providing a strong technical basis for confident, resilient marina master planning.