Nomination desk
Tema is the coast east of Accra, Ghana's main commercial port. Maingate Shipping coordinates port agency at Tema for container ships, bulk carriers, tankers, car carriers and fishing vessels: our partner agent at Tema attends under Maingate's instruction and the Mombasa desk coordinates, with one proforma DA, one reporting style and one contact for the master and the principal.
A call at Tema Port, Ghana begins with the port's geography: the coast east of Accra, Ghana's main commercial port. Vessels work the deep-water container terminal, the general cargo and bulk berths, the oil refinery jetty and the fishing harbour, 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, wheat, clinker, fuel and vehicles inbound, with cocoa, cashew and aluminium products outbound make up the trade, and Accra and southern Ghana, with transit cargo to Burkina Faso, Mali and Niger. 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 Tema that shapes every call: cocoa export timing, refinery tanker calls and a busy container terminal give Tema several distinct rhythms that an agent balances at once.
Each line is quoted in the proforma DA for Tema Port, Ghana and supported by a receipt in the final account.
The nomination is acknowledged promptly, and the desk answers with a proforma DA built on Tema's tariff and the vessel's particulars. Notices go to the port, customs, immigration and health; the berth and pilot are booked for the working area the cargo needs, whether that is the deep-water container terminal or another part of the port.
Receivers, shippers and their clearing agents are contacted before arrival so that documents, permits and evacuation are ready when the first grab or the first container moves.
The cargoes worked at Tema are containers, wheat, clinker, fuel and vehicles inbound, with cocoa, cashew and aluminium products outbound, and each has its own rhythm of gangs, gear and receivers. The desk agrees the discharge or loading plan with the master and the stevedores, keeps the daily figures and records every stoppage with its reason and its duration.
Surveyors appointed by cargo or vessel interests are given access and information; the desk does not act for them, but it makes sure they are there when the operation needs them.
Cargo through Tema does not stop at the gate: Accra and southern Ghana, with transit cargo to Burkina Faso, Mali and Niger. The desk works with the receiver's clearing agent on transit bonds, delivery orders and evacuation by road or rail so that the discharge is not throttled by what happens landside.
Bills of lading, mate's receipts and out-turn reports are reconciled before the vessel sails, so that quantity questions are settled while the parties are still at the port.
The airport for Tema is Kotoka International Airport at Accra, about half an hour away, and crew changes here are routine; the desk confirms the immigration position for each nationality when the crew list arrives. Bunkering at Tema is established, and where it is not, the desk plans the stem at the nearest port on the route.
Spares are cleared in transit and delivered on board, cash to master is delivered against the master's signature, and a doctor is brought to the vessel or the seafarer taken to hospital as the case requires.
Cocoa export timing, refinery tanker calls and a busy container terminal give Tema several distinct rhythms that an agent balances at once. 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 Tema 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.
Container ships, bulk carriers, tankers, car carriers and fishing vessels, for cargo calls, bunker calls, crew changes and stores.
Our partner agent at Tema, appointed and instructed by Maingate Shipping, attends the vessel; the Mombasa desk coordinates, reports to the principal and is responsible for the service.
A proforma DA is issued on the port's tariff before the call, the advance is remitted, and the final DA with every receipt reconciles against it within the agreed period.
Crew changes are routine via Kotoka International Airport at Accra. Yes, bunkering is established at Tema and bunker-only calls are handled by the desk.
Yes. The Africa agency line covers West and Central Africa and the rest of the continent on one instruction, with a DA per port on one account.
Nominate Maingate Shipping and the answer comes from Mombasa with a proforma DA attached.
The desks below cover the same coast and the same principals as Tema.
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Maingate Shipping Limited · Express Building, Moi Avenue, Mombasa, Kenya · ops@maingateshipping.com · +254 784 622 091