Sal Rei Port · CVSAR

Underwater Hull Cleaning at Sal Rei Port

Full hull cleaned in the water, vessel stays on hire

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

Cleanship Marine provides underwater hull cleaning at Sal Rei Port, Boa Vista, working the 160-metre wharf behind the breakwater and anchorage off Sal Rei. Commercial dive teams remove slime, weed and shell growth from the vertical sides, flat bottom, bilge keels, sea chests and niche areas with the vessel afloat and on hire — no dry dock, no diversion, no off-hire.

Sal Rei is the port of Boa Vista, the third-largest island in Cape Verde and one of its fastest-growing tourism destinations. The port's traffic is building materials, containers and supplies for the island's resorts, plus the inter-island ferries, and the small Ilhéu de Sal Rei lies about a kilometre offshore.

Most of what comes into Sal Rei is on coasters carrying building materials and supplies for Boa Vista's resorts, and a coaster on this kind of island run spends a lot of time slow or stationary in warm water. With only one 160-metre wharf, berth time is short and in demand, so the practical plan is often to clean at anchor off the town before she comes in, then let her work cargo without anyone in the water.

What it gets you

Hydrodynamic smoothness restored before fouling reaches the calcareous stage that damages coating
Fuel and emissions penalty from drag reduced without taking the vessel off hire
Documented condition record for the technical file and the next docking specification
Sea chests and inlets cleared, protecting cooling water flow

Working conditions at Sal Rei

Sal Rei's wharf, built in 2015, is 160 metres long with a minimum depth of 7 metres and is protected by a 930-metre breakwater, so the berth itself is sheltered. Outside it, Boa Vista is a low, sandy island ringed by shoals and reefs — its coast is known for its shipwrecks — and the sand the trade wind carries off the island clouds the shallow water near the shore. Vessels that are too big for the wharf lie at anchor off the town.

Where we work: 160-metre wharf behind the breakwater · Anchorage off Sal Rei
Vessels we see here: General cargo and container coasters · Inter-island ferries · Fishing vessels

What we do at Sal Rei

Pre-clean fouling survey to establish coverage, growth type and coating condition before any tool touches the hull
Brush cart cleaning of the flat bottom and vertical sides, with brush hardness selected against your antifouling specification
Hand cleaning of bilge keels, rudder, stern frame, thruster tunnels, anodes and the niches a cart cannot follow
Sea chest gratings and inlet openings cleared of growth and debris to restore cooling water flow
Diving permission cleared with ENAPOR – Portos de Cabo Verde and the terminal before mobilisation
Before-and-after video and stills, with a written report on coating condition and anode wastage

Planning the window at Sal Rei

The trade-wind and swell season governs the calendar at Sal Rei Port, with the strongest trade winds from roughly December to May, and a short rainy season from August to October. The islands sit in open ocean, so a port's exposure depends on which side of its island it faces: the lee-side harbours stay calm while the trade wind blows, but long-period swell from North Atlantic storms reaches the north and west coasts in winter, and the late-summer tropical waves that pass through here can turn into storms. Because the harbour is sheltered, work here normally runs alongside or at a protected anchorage and can proceed in parallel with cargo operations rather than competing with them for the berth window.

Work is taken at the 160-metre wharf behind the breakwater and anchorage off Sal Rei, and which of those a vessel ends up at changes the dive plan more than the season does. Teams mobilise via Boa Vista (BVC), 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 Sal Rei

Container tonnage on a fixed rotation shows the familiar pattern: light slime over most of the vertical sides, with the real accumulation in the flat bottom, the bilge keels and the niches where flow is slowest. Those are the areas that cost fuel and the ones a quick clean tends to skip.

Shelter is a mixed blessing for a hull. The same calm that makes the port easy to work in is still water, and still water grows fouling faster than an exposed berth does.

Standard scope of work

Included as standard on every underwater hull cleaning attendance, wherever the vessel is. Anything outside it is quoted separately and flagged before mobilisation, never added afterwards.

Fouling survey: A pre-clean dive establishes fouling type, coverage and severity, and confirms coating condition so the correct tooling is selected.
Flat bottom and vertical sides: Brush cart cleaning of large areas, removing slime, weed and shell growth to restore surface smoothness.
Niche areas: Hand cleaning of bilge keels, bow thruster tunnels, rudder, stern frame, anodes and other niche areas where fouling concentrates.
Sea chests and gratings: Sea chest gratings and inlet openings cleared of growth and debris to restore cooling water flow.
Documentation: Underwater video and stills before and after, with a written report covering coating condition and anode wastage.

Full Underwater Hull Cleaning service details

How we deliver it at Sal Rei

1
Scope and vessel details
Tell us the vessel, her particulars, the coating specification and the window at Sal Rei. 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
ENAPOR – Portos de Cabo Verde 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. Diving permission, terminal approval and any environmental clearance for in-water work are handled by us, not left with the agent to chase.
3
Mobilisation to Sal Rei
Divers, compressors, brush carts and cameras mobilise via Boa Vista (BVC). Where a vessel is also calling at Palmeira, 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 underwater 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.

Sal Rei Port at a glance

UN/LOCODE: CVSAR
Port type: State Port
Island: Boa Vista
Country: Cape Verde
Water body: Atlantic Ocean, behind the Ilhéu de Sal Rei
Port authority: ENAPOR – Portos de Cabo Verde
Main cargoes: Construction materials, Containers, General cargo, Food and supplies
Crew mobilisation: Boa Vista (BVC)
Services here: Hull Cleaning

Frequently asked — Underwater Hull Cleaning at Sal Rei

Do you provide underwater hull cleaning at Sal Rei Port?

Yes. Cleanship Marine works Sal Rei Port (CVSAR) in Boa Vista, Cape Verde, covering the 160-metre wharf behind the breakwater and anchorage off Sal Rei. Teams mobilise via Boa Vista (BVC) with the full spread.

Is the hull cleaned alongside or at anchor at Sal Rei?

Usually at anchor. There is a single 160-metre wharf, and its time is needed for cargo, so we clean at the anchorage off Sal Rei before the vessel berths. Alongside work is possible where the berth schedule and the port allow it.

Can underwater hull cleaning be done while the vessel works cargo at Sal Rei?

Yes, in most cases. The harbour is sheltered enough that divers work alongside while cargo operations continue, and neither holds the other up. The vessel stays on hire throughout, and there is no diversion and no dry dock. We scope against the conditions at Sal Rei and tell you honestly whether the window you have is enough.

Do you need a diving permit from ENAPOR – Portos de Cabo Verde?

Yes, and we obtain it. Diving permission from ENAPOR – Portos de Cabo Verde, terminal approval where the berth requires it, and any environmental clearance for in-water work are arranged as part of the job rather than left with the agent. The master's permit to work and the immobilisation of machinery are agreed on board before anyone enters the water.

What is underwater visibility like at Sal Rei?

Visibility at Sal Rei Port is good in deeper water but reduced near the shore, where sand blown and washed off the island hangs in the shallows, and the trade-wind and swell season 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.

Which vessels do you carry out underwater hull cleaning on at Sal Rei?

General cargo and container coasters, Inter-island ferries, Fishing vessels — the traffic at Sal Rei Port runs to construction materials, containers and general cargo, so those are the profiles we see most. The scope is sized to the vessel, not to a standard package.

How quickly can a team mobilise to Sal Rei?

Divers and equipment mobilise via Boa Vista (BVC). Give us the ETA and the window and we will confirm what is achievable rather than promise a date we cannot hold. Where the vessel also calls at Palmeira or Praia, one mobilisation is often sized to cover both.

What does underwater hull cleaning at Sal Rei cost?

It depends on the vessel's dimensions and wetted area, the fouling state found, the coating specification and the working window available at Sal Rei. We would rather scope it properly and give you a specific figure than quote a headline rate that changes once the work starts. Send the details and the window at Sal Rei and you get a scoped price, usually the same working day.

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