This new $2bn Monaco neighborhood just rose straight from the ocean

The Principality of Monaco spent billions designing Mareterra – also known as Le Portier – an artificial island attached to Monte Carlo.

The island houses apartments and penthouses, but it also features 200 EV charging stations and 800 trees.

Amazingly, it only took a few years to build from scratch.

The idea behind this project was simple, and it had to do with this country’s main selling point.

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In 2018, the spot where Mareterra is now was almost completely empty.

All you could see were two boats with cranes and davits on them, doing some unspecified work in the sea.

And yet from there, it only took the small nation state a few years to build this from scratch.

Pictured below – Very early phase of construction with ‘reclamation of land’ in August 2018

The project reportedly cost $2 billion, but it won’t take long to recoup that investment, considering many of the apartments on the island were sold years ago, sight unseen.

This brings us on to the reason why it was built in the first place.

Monte Carlo, as most people probably know, is a tax haven.

If you’re a resident, your income tax bill goes down to precisely zero, which is why, for example, most F1 drivers – from Fernando Alonso to Charles Leclerc – choose to reside in the Principality of Monaco.

Pictured below – Final phase of construction in October 2024

But the Principality of Monaco is also the second smallest country in the world, so there isn’t a lot of space for would-be residents.

And this creates another problem, because said would-be residents have net worths which consist of many zeros.

These people don’t want second-hand buildings or condos – they want new, shiny stuff.

This explains why Monaco has been erecting skyscrapers like they are going out of fashion, hence why it only took the Principality a few years to build this island.

The very first brick (figuratively speaking) was laid out in July 2019, and Mareterra/Le Portier officially opened in late 2024.

Pictured below – Mareterra/Le Portier in February 2025

Some people call this a district or a neighborhood, while others call it a residential area.

In truth, Mareterra is simply a semi-artificial island connected to Monte Carlo via bridges, and built for residential purposes.

We say ‘semi’ artificial island, because Monaco calls this reclaimed land.

The island was built right next to the entrance of the tunnel that’s also part of the F1 Grand Prix in Monaco.

It was a strategic location, but it was also the only available location, considering the only other option would’ve been Port Hercules, about a mile away.

But Port Hercules is where the lavish yachts are moored, and one would ever dream of displacing those.

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