Maharashtra · INDHU

Hold Cleaning at Dahanu Port

Holds ready for the next fixture at Dahanu Port — long idle discharge cycles at an open coal anchorage.

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Tell us the vessel, the port and the window. Scoped reply, usually the same working day.

Cleanship Marine cleans cargo holds at Dahanu Port (INDHU), Maharashtra — shore gangs alongside, riding crews on the passage out, and IRATA rope access teams for the upper hold. Coal is the only residue that matters here. Discharge is by grab into barges over several days, so coal dust films every surface and settles again after each sweep — the cleaning is done once discharge is genuinely finished, not between grabs. Vessels leaving Dahanu for a clean fixture need the full wash and rinse sequence.

Working conditions at Dahanu

Most of the work at this port happens at the anchorage, simply because that is where vessels spend their time. The south-west monsoon sets the outer limits of the calendar, roughly June to September, and it affects the anchorage far more than the berth. Access approval runs through Maharashtra Maritime Board and the terminal, and the disposal route for residues and washings is fixed before the gang boards rather than found afterwards.

Where we work: Outer anchorage · Lighterage transfer position
Vessels we see here: Handysize and Supramax bulk carriers · Lighterage barges and tugs

Hold Cleaning scopes at Dahanu

3 scopes, one team and one mobilisation. Most vessels calling here take more than one on the same attendance.

Planning the window at Dahanu

The south-west monsoon governs the calendar at Dahanu Port, roughly June to September. For hold work the wind matters less than the rain: holds cannot be washed, dried and closed in wet weather, and a hold shut up damp fails inspection however clean it looks. Waiting time is the opportunity here. Vessels sit at this port for extended periods, so holds can be worked properly and to a standard rather than rushed between grabs — and a gang put on board during the wait costs the vessel nothing in schedule.

Teams mobilise via Mumbai (BOM), so give us the ETA as early as you have it — the travel is the flexible part, the approvals and the working window are not.

What we typically find at Dahanu

The standing residues at Dahanu Port are thermal coal and general bulk — the dusty, abrasive kind that films every surface and packs into frames, brackets and the tank-top margins. Anything following into a clean or food-grade cargo needs the full sequence: sweep, wash, rinse and dry, not a hose down.

The other thing that shows up here is time. Vessels wait, holds sit shut with residue still in them, and residue that sits gets harder to shift — the job found after a long wait at anchorage is not the job that would have been found on the day of discharge.

How we deliver it at Dahanu

1
Scope and vessel details
Tell us the vessel, her particulars, the last and next cargo and the window at Dahanu. We come back with a defined scope, a crew size and a duration we will stand behind. Where the conditions here will not support what has been asked for, we say so at this stage rather than after mobilisation.
2
Approvals and waste routing
Maharashtra Maritime Board approves the work alongside the local harbour master, and at a state port that conversation is quicker but less formal — it is worth having in writing. The disposal route for residues and washings is fixed before the gang boards — MARPOL Annex V compliance is a documented chain, not an assurance. Where reception at Dahanu is limited, the plan changes rather than the paperwork.
3
Mobilisation to Dahanu
Gangs, pumps, chemicals and equipment mobilise via Mumbai (BOM). Where a vessel is also calling at Mumbai, one mobilisation is normally sized to cover both.
4
Entry, sequencing and the work
Enclosed-space entry runs to the vessel's own permit system, with a fresh gas test before every entry and after every break. Gas testing, standby cover and continuous supervision run throughout, and progress is reported hold by hold rather than only at the end.
5
Report and handover
A completion report covering hold cleaning is issued with before-and-after imagery, hold by hold and anything found that you should know about. The findings are discussed with the vessel rather than emailed and forgotten.

Dahanu Port at a glance

UN/LOCODE: INDHU
Port type: State Port
State: Maharashtra
Country: India
Water body: Arabian Sea
Port authority: Maharashtra Maritime Board
Main cargoes: Thermal coal, General bulk
Crew mobilisation: Mumbai (BOM)
Services here: Hull Cleaning and Hold Cleaning

Frequently asked — Dahanu Port

Does Cleanship provide hold cleaning at Dahanu Port?

Yes. We cover the full hold cleaning scope at Dahanu Port (INDHU), Maharashtra — cargo hold cleaning (shore gang), hold cleaning riding crew and rope access hold cleaning. Teams mobilise via Mumbai (BOM).

Where is the work done at Dahanu — alongside, at anchorage or on passage?

Most of the work at this port happens at the anchorage, simply because that is where vessels spend their time.

Who approves hold cleaning work at Dahanu?

Maharashtra Maritime Board issues the port-side approval at Dahanu Port, with terminal approval on top where the berth requires it. We arrange both, along with the waste reception and disposal route, so it does not fall to the agent or the master.

Which vessels call at Dahanu?

Handysize and Supramax bulk carriers, Lighterage barges and tugs — Dahanu Port is long idle discharge cycles at an open coal anchorage, handling thermal coal and general bulk. What sizes a hold job is the number of holds, the last cargo and the standard the next fixture demands — not the vessel's dimensions.

Can this be done without taking the vessel off hire at Dahanu?

Yes — that is the point of it. Every scope listed here is carried out with the vessel afloat and working, at the berth, at the anchorage or on the passage out. Shore gangs work alongside or at anchorage and riding crews finish on the passage, so no port time is spent on cleaning and the vessel is never off hire.

Do you cover other ports near Dahanu?

Yes. Mumbai, Nhava Sheva and Magdalla all sit within the same operating range for hold cleaning, and a single mobilisation is often sized to cover more than one vessel on the same trip. We work 63 ports on the coverage list for this line.

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