Maharashtra · INDHU

Hull Cleaning at Dahanu Port

In-water hull, propeller and survey work 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 provides the full underwater scope at Dahanu Port (INDHU), Maharashtra — hull cleaning, propeller super polishing, bow and stern thruster work, class-approved in-water survey and UWILD. Every scope is carried out with the vessel afloat and on hire, at the berth or at the anchorage.

Dahanu is a lighterage anchorage serving the thermal power station on the Palghar coast, working coal parcels out to barges rather than over a deep-water berth. Vessels sit at anchor through long discharge cycles, and that is precisely when fouling gets its opportunity — the hull is warm, static and in nutrient-rich coastal water for days at a time.

Working conditions at Dahanu

Dahanu works as an open anchorage on the Palghar coast north of Mumbai, so every dive is done with the vessel at anchor and no shelter from swell. The south-west monsoon effectively closes the season between June and September. Coal dust from barge transfer settles down through the water column around the working area, so visibility drops sharply near an active discharge and the dive plan puts the team clear of the transfer side of the hull wherever the anchorage and the wind allow.

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

Hull Cleaning scopes at Dahanu

5 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. Swell and reduced surface visibility close most open-water work on this coast for the duration, and the weeks either side are unreliable rather than unusable. Work here is done with the vessel riding to her anchor, so the dive plan is built around sea state and swell rather than a berth slot, and the team stands by for a workable window rather than a scheduled one.

Work is taken at the outer anchorage and lighterage transfer position, and which of those a vessel ends up at changes the dive plan more than the season does. 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

Dry bulk handling here puts cargo dust into the water around the berths and anchorage. It settles on horizontal surfaces and packs into sea chest gratings and inlet openings, so inlet and grating clearance is routinely a larger part of the job at Dahanu than owners budget for.

Vessels here sit at anchor for long periods, and a stationary hull in warm water is the ideal fouling substrate. The heaviest growth we lift at this port is almost always off a vessel that has been waiting rather than working.

How we deliver it at Dahanu

1
Scope and vessel details
Tell us the vessel, her particulars, the coating specification 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
Permits and approvals
Diving permission is obtained from Maharashtra Maritime Board, along with terminal approval where the berth requires it and any environmental clearance for in-water work. This is handled by us, not left with the agent to chase.
3
Mobilisation to Dahanu
Divers, compressors, brush carts and cameras mobilise via Mumbai (BOM). Where a vessel is also calling at Mumbai, one mobilisation is normally sized to cover both.
4
Safety setup and the dive
The vessel is secured for diving — main engine, shaft and thrusters immobilised, sea suctions confirmed shut, permit agreed with the master. Teams work under surface supervision with continuous diver communications and video throughout.
5
Report and handover
A completion report covering hull cleaning is issued with before-and-after imagery, coating and anode condition 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 hull cleaning at Dahanu Port?

Yes. We cover the full hull cleaning scope at Dahanu Port (INDHU), Maharashtra — underwater hull cleaning, propeller polishing, thruster cleaning & polishing, in-water class survey and uwild. Teams mobilise via Mumbai (BOM).

What is underwater visibility like at Dahanu?

Visibility at Dahanu Port is generally workable outside the monsoon, though cargo dust from lighterage reduces it sharply near an active transfer, and the south-west monsoon sets the outer limits of the calendar. How the tide and sea state shape the dive plan is set out in full in the working-conditions section on this page.

Who approves hull 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 any environmental clearance for in-water cleaning, 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. Those are the profiles we see most, and the scope is sized to the vessel rather than to a standard package.

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. Divers work with the vessel afloat at the berth or the anchorage, so there is no dry dock, no diversion and no off-hire.

Do you cover other ports near Dahanu?

Yes. Mumbai, Nhava Sheva and Magdalla all sit within the same operating range for hull cleaning, and a single mobilisation is often sized to cover more than one vessel on the same trip. We work 46 ports on the coverage list for this line.

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