A big overhaul of the navigational markers in Mo’orea is underway. The year-long project aims to upgrade the lagoon’s buoyage system, improving everyone’s safety, from fishermen to sailors.

Better Navigational Aids to Make the Lagoon Safer for Users

In October 2025, French Polynesia initiated a major upgrade of maritime buoyage in Mo’orea, in response to the lagoon’s increasing number of visitors and the wide range of water sports.

Over a year, specialized teams will be working over a wide area stretching from Tiahura (Totara pass) to Maatea (Teruaupu pass), outside the Vaiare area. The project involves upgrading roughly one hundred navigational markers (pillars and lights), repairing, and supplementing the buoyage, installing new swing moorings, and mooring buoys, as well as removing old concrete structures in an effort to leave the seabed in its former state. This buoyage work will improve the visibility and dependability of the maritime network, which is essential to be able to sail safely in the lagoon.
The work will cost 160 million F CFP, jointly funded by the Country (30%) and the State (70%), under the 3rd Financial Instrument. This funding underscores the shared commitment to ensure maritime safety, while supporting trade and local economic development.

The Marquesas and Tuamotus Islands Also Concerned

Mo’orea is just one phase of a comprehensive program to upgrade maritime buoyage throughout the Fenua. Today, the maritime area surrounding Polynesia has over 1,700 beacons, serviced every year on a budget of around 300 million XPF francs and a team of 19 Direction de l’équipment (infrastructure management) employees.

In 2025, the upgrade will also concern the islands of Ua Pou and Ua Huka in the Marquesas, Fakarava, Makemo and Tikehau in the Tuamotus, and Bora Bora in the Leeward Islands.
This extensive project highlights the focus on maritime safety in a context where the sea is an essential link connecting the islands. In Mo’orea, the upgrade of the buoyage system marks a new step towards safer, sustainable, lagoon-friendly sailing.