Photo: Petar Fabijan

“ACI Marina Rijeka will set new standards in the region. Architectural solutions, first-class service and authentic experiences will turn this part of Croatia into a true nautical oasis.”

In recent years, large investments such as ACI Marina Rovinj and the ACI Sail project have marked the activity of the ACI Management Board. Juraj Bukša, a member of the Board, explains the importance of the new business venture undertaken in Rijeka that will further strengthen the position of the largest Croatian nautical company as a leader in the region.

A joint partnership set up with the aim of achieving a particular business goal, or a joint venture, is not a novelty for ACI. You have had a similar experience before?

An equal partnership with another company as a successful business venture is not unknown to ACI. On 1 July 1989, the ACI marina in Korčula was opened, and the one in Ičići started operating a year later. This was the result of cooperation with the Italian group Ligresti-Grassetto and the first real joint venture in former Yugoslavia. We are not talking about an international loan or licence, but a joint investment with a shared risk of loss and profit. Today, 32 years later, in order to construct and manage the port of nautical tourism of ACI Marina Rijeka, a joint company ACI-GITONE has been established with the aim of putting Rijeka on the map as a world’s nautical destination and of improving Croatian nautical tourism.

What does ACI stand to gain from this partnership and what are the benefits for GITONE Kvarner?

The joint company ACI-GITONE was established for the purpose of building and managing the port of nautical tourism of ACI Marina Rijeka. On the one hand, ACI, the largest marina chain in the Mediterranean, brings the knowledge and experience of a leader in nautical tourism in Croatia, while, on the other hand, GITONE Kvarner contributes its in-depth knowledge of providing high-quality tourist services. In synergy, these two companies, joined in the company ACI-GITONE, want to use their experience, knowledge, tradition and innovation to create a unique project that will change the present and future of the city of Rijeka and the entire Rijeka region for the better, improving tourism in Kvarner and Croatia in general. Nautical facilities in the marina (piers where boats will berth, the reception area, boat maintenance and repair shop, boat service area, etc.) will be managed by ACI, while the restaurant and commercial facilities (congress tourism services, accommodation for boaters, restaurants, shops, etc.) will be run by GITONE Kvarner.

The residents of Rijeka and the entire Primorje-Gorski Kotar region stand to benefit the most from this partnership. The ACI Marina Rijeka project represents a major step forward for the entire Croatian tourism sector, especially its nautical segment. The interests of ACI and GITONE Kvarner are undoubtedly the same in this partnership; they have a common goal – to improve the tourist image of Rijeka and to position Kvarner as a competitive nautical region on the Adriatic.