Nomination desk
Vessels bound for Djibouti, Djibouti, get one instruction, one proforma DA and one desk to call: container ships, bulk carriers, tankers, livestock carriers, naval vessels and vessels on Red Sea transit are attended by our partner agent at Djibouti under Maingate's instruction, with the Mombasa desk planning, reporting and closing the account.
A call at Djibouti Port, Djibouti begins with the port's geography: the Gulf of Tadjoura at the mouth of the Red Sea, on one of the busiest shipping lanes in the world. Vessels work Doraleh Container Terminal, the Doraleh multipurpose port, the Horizon oil terminal and the older port in the city, and which of these the vessel is bound for decides the pilot, the stevedores, the gate and the receiver's arrangements. Maingate Shipping plans the call from that decision outward.
Containers and bulk cargo for Ethiopia, petroleum products, fertilizer, wheat and food aid, with livestock and coffee outbound make up the trade, and the Addis Ababa railway and the road corridor carry the bulk of Ethiopia's foreign trade through Djibouti. The desk's job is to keep the vessel's time at the berth spent on cargo, not on the documents that should have been ready before she arrived.
The particularity of Djibouti that shapes every call: the port doubles as a bunkering and crew change hub for vessels transiting Bab-el-Mandeb, and naval vessels from several nations call here.
Nothing on this list is assumed: it is agreed for the Djibouti call in writing and accounted for with its receipt.
Preparation for Djibouti runs on a checklist that the desk sends the principal with the proforma DA: the documents the port wants, the documents the receiver wants and the cut-off times for each. Berth application at Doraleh Container Terminal or the relevant working area, pilot booking and the notices to the authorities follow as soon as the ETA is firm.
The master receives a pre-arrival message with the anchorage position, the pilot boarding arrangements, the agent's contact and what the boarding officer will bring on arrival.
At Djibouti the cargo is containers and bulk cargo for Ethiopia, petroleum products, fertilizer, wheat and food aid, with livestock and coffee outbound. The boarding officer follows the operation hour by hour: commencement, stoppages with reasons, shift changes, weather, quantities reconciled between ship, stevedores and receiver. Where the charterer or receiver appoints surveyors, the desk coordinates their attendance.
The record is kept to the standard a laytime calculation needs, so that owner and charterer can settle the voyage account on the same facts.
The Addis Ababa railway and the road corridor carry the bulk of Ethiopia's foreign trade through Djibouti. Transit documents, delivery orders, customs release and the receiver's transport are coordinated so that cargo leaves the quay as it lands and the vessel is not held by a document.
For vessels calling more than one port in Djibouti or the region, the desk plans the sequence and keeps quantities and documents consistent between calls.
Husbandry at Djibouti: crew movements (routine, via Djibouti-Ambouli International Airport), bunkers (established), fresh water, provisions, garbage, spares, cash and medical cases, each handled with the call and each shown as a line in the DA with its receipt.
Where the charterer's agent holds the cargo call, owners place their husbandry with the desk as protecting agent and receive a separate owner's account.
The port doubles as a bunkering and crew change hub for vessels transiting Bab-el-Mandeb, and naval vessels from several nations call here. The desk plans around this rather than discovering it on the day, and tells the principal at nomination what it means for the call's timing and cost.
The partner agent at Djibouti lives with the port every day; the Mombasa desk brings the principal's standards, the DA format and the reporting, and stands behind the service.
The same working day, with a proforma DA and the list of documents the port and the receiver will want before arrival.
Our partner agent at Djibouti, appointed and instructed by Maingate Shipping, attends the vessel; the Mombasa desk coordinates, reports to the principal and is responsible for the service.
The desk revises the berth and pilot bookings, informs the receiver and the authorities, and tells the principal what the change means for waiting time and cost.
Routine, through Djibouti-Ambouli International Airport, minutes from the port. The desk files the immigration formalities before the crew travels.
Yes, bunkering is established at Djibouti and bunker-only calls are handled by the desk.
Receipts behind every line, a record behind every stoppage, a desk behind every call.
The desks below cover the same coast and the same principals as Djibouti.
Also on maingateshipping.com: Ship agency at Mombasa · Ship agency and charter brokers · Ship brokerage · About Maingate · Contact
Maingate Shipping Limited · Express Building, Moi Avenue, Mombasa, Kenya · ops@maingateshipping.com · +254 784 622 091