Country desk
Douala is the tidal river port that handles most of Cameroon's trade and the transit cargo of Chad and the Central African Republic, while Kribi's deep water takes the larger container ships and bulk carriers that the river cannot.
Maingate Shipping Limited coordinates ship agency across Cameroon for owners, charterers, managers, traders and lines. The trade through Cameroonian ports is timber, cocoa, coffee, cotton and bananas outbound; rice, wheat, clinker, fuel and containers inbound. Chad and the Central African Republic through Douala.
Formalities: the port authorities of Douala and Kribi with their terminal concessionaires. The desk works with them on every call and keeps the principal clear of the detail unless the detail matters.
Operational note for Cameroon: tide tables and river draft govern Douala, and Kribi calls draw their crew travel, provisions and contractors from Douala.
Each port has its own desk with the terminals, the cargo and the services a call needs.
Cameroon's ports are Douala, Kribi. Douala handles containers, timber, cocoa, coffee, cotton and bananas outbound, with rice, wheat, clinker and fuel inbound through the container terminal, the general cargo and timber berths, and the fruit and reefer quay. Kribi handles containers on transshipment and direct calls, timber, and project cargo for energy and mining through the container terminal and the multipurpose terminal, with dedicated bulk facilities planned for the mining corridor.
Calls at each port are attended by our partner agent there under Maingate's instruction, with the Mombasa desk issuing the proforma DA, tracking the call and closing the account.
The corridor is the second half of every Cameroonian call. Chad and the Central African Republic through Douala, and the desk coordinates transit documentation and evacuation with the forwarders and clearing agents so that the port is a gate and not a bottleneck.
Split cargoes and multi-port loadings in Cameroon are planned as one voyage with consistent documents.
The port authorities of Douala and Kribi with their terminal concessionaires. Pre-arrival notices, customs and immigration formalities, health clearance and port documentation are filed by the desk at each port in the form the authority expects.
Principals receive a pre-arrival confirmation, daily reports during the call and a departure report with the statement of facts.
Tide tables and river draft govern Douala, and Kribi calls draw their crew travel, provisions and contractors from Douala. Crew changes, bunkers, spares, cash to master and medical cases are handled at the port that suits the itinerary, and the desk tells the principal at nomination which port that is.
Owners whose charterers appoint the cargo agent place these matters with the desk as protecting agent.
Douala, Kribi, each with its own desk in this cluster. Smaller ports and anchorages are covered on request.
Our partner agent at each port, appointed and instructed by Maingate Shipping; the Mombasa desk coordinates and is responsible to the principal.
Yes. Multi-port itineraries are handled as one appointment with a separate DA per port on one account.
Yes, at each port according to its airport and immigration arrangements, described on the crew change desk for that port.
Send the vessel's particulars, ETA, port, cargo or purpose and the principal's details to the desk by email; a proforma DA follows promptly.
Nominate Maingate Shipping and the answer comes from Mombasa with a proforma DA attached.
The Cameroon desk connects to the port desks below and to the Africa agency line.
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