Port Services and Facilities
The Port of Aden offers a
range of services to
shipping lines and other clients. These include:
Marine Services: The port Control Tower,
operated by the Marine Department, provides ships approaching the port with
advice on anchoring, pilotage, towage and berthing. The Control Tower is
equipped with VHF operating on all marine channels and an Automatic
Identification System that can identify vessels fitted with AIS between
Aden and Bab el Mandeb. Pilotage and towage services are provided around the
clock to and from berths at the various port terminals. Buoy berths for ships,
barges, oil platforms and other floating structures wishing to stay in port for
short or long periods of time are available, together with short and long-term
anchoring areas for yachts.
Ship bunkering is available at two dolphin berths with an alongside depth of
11.9m below chart datum. These are connected to oil storage tanks ashore by
pipeline. Fuelling services are operated by the Aden Bunkering Department.
Ship Repair Services: The Ports
Corporation and the National Drydock Company provide ship repair services. The
Technical Department of the Corporation is located inside the inner harbor
breakwater. It has slipways for pilot and mooring boats, and for tugs, crane
barges and other larger vessels. The main slipway can lift 850 tons and has a
carriage length of 40m, width 14m. Hull repairs and work on Azimuth Stern
Drives, propellers, stern shafts, rudders, gear boxes, hull grit blasting and
painting are carried out on the slipway. It can handle the latest ASD tugs and
vessels equipped with Voith Schneider propulsion systems, as well as large
fishing trawlers with conventional drives. The work is supported by metal
casting, machining, grinding and carpentry shops. The Technical Department also
carries out hydrographic and land surveys within port limits. The National
Dockyard Company (NDC) has a 1,500 tonne lifting capacity floating dock with a
width inside the walls of 17m and a side slipway with a 1,000 tonne lifting
capacity and specialized workshops for hull and machinery repairs.
Wharf Services: The Wharf Department
at Ma’alla operates four main berths, 1-4, with an alongside depth of 11.0m, a
RoRo berth depth 7.6m and berths 5 and 6, total length 250m and depth 6.7m.
Berths 1 and 2 are used for container operations at present, but will become
available for other cargoes when all container operations are moved to the Aden
Container Terminal (ACT). Berth 3 is equipped for unloading bulk grain by
mechanical unloader to silos. Berths 4 and 5-6 have pipes set in the quay for
pumping bulk cement to silos. Stevedoring services are provided by private
companies. Containers and all types of general and bulk cargoes can be handled
at Ma’alla, which also provides secure or open cargo storage. Two cement storage
and bagging plants operate inside the terminal. The Aden Container Terminal
(ACT) has 700m of quay providing two berths for container ships of up to 8,000
TEU and an alongside depth at chart datum of 16.0m. The Aden Gulf Terminal at
the western end of the Ma’alla Terminal is privately operated and offers
stevedoring services for company cargoes and other vessels. It has two berths
for ships of up to 250m in length. The north side berth has a depth alongside of
14m and the south berth 12m below chart datum.
Other Services: The Technical Department
maintains lighthouses, synchronized navigation buoys marking the port approaches
channels, and mooring buoys around the harbor. It also does capital dredging to
create berths for the Coastguard and Maritime Affairs Authority craft in the
past 5 years, and does maintenance dredging at berths and in channels. Port
Security services for ships and Government terminals are controlled by the Yemen
Coastguard, which has its main marine base and training center in Aden. Private
security services operate inside the ACT and AGT. Private companies are licenced
to provide potable water by barge, to remove garbage for the ships and to
collect and dispose of liquid and solid oily waste and black water. Approved
oily waste disposal and re-cycling facilities are available at Aden. Ship
Chandlers provide food and drinks, spare parts, general chandlery and other
supplies. Shipping Agents handle all formalities for ship arrivals and
departures, crew changes, arrange hospital or medical treatment for crew
members. The Port Health Authority grants pratique and is responsible for
assessing any health risks on board visiting ships.