Freetown Port · SLFNA

UWILD at Freetown Port

Survey credit earned without leaving the water

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

Cleanship Marine runs full UWILD programmes — Underwater Inspection In Lieu of Drydocking — at Freetown Port, Western Area, from eligibility discussion through class liaison to the final report package.

UWILD lets a vessel satisfy a survey requirement that would otherwise mean a dry docking, at a fraction of the cost and with none of the off-hire. The requirements are exacting: the contractor must hold class approval, the vessel must be eligible, hull markings must let the surveyor locate features precisely, and the inspection has to be delivered live and documented. Shelter is on your side here — the vessel is stable and the dive is uninterrupted — but basin silt means the lighting and camera plan has to be agreed with the surveyor before the class attendance is booked, not improvised on the day.

There is no large dry dock in Sierra Leone, so for an eligible ship trading here a UWILD can save a long deviation to a yard. We confirm eligibility with the class society first, then plan the inspection for the dry season and the clearest water in the harbour.

What it gets you

Drydocking deferred and the survey credit earned in the water
Class liaison handled end to end rather than left with the superintendent
Eligibility confirmed before cost is committed, not discovered afterwards
A documented inspection record that stands up to class review

Working conditions at Freetown

Freetown sits on the south side of the Sierra Leone River estuary, one of the largest natural harbours on the African coast, and the quay is sheltered from the Atlantic swell that works the open coast to either side. What it is not sheltered from is the rain: Freetown is one of the wettest capitals in West Africa, and from roughly May to October the river carries run-off into the harbour, cutting visibility at the berths and stopping deck work in the heaviest downpours. Warm estuary water and long berth waits build fouling steadily.

Where we work: Container terminal (berths 3–6) · Bulk and break-bulk berths · Kissy Oil Terminal · Inner harbour anchorage
Vessels we see here: Feeder container ships · General cargo and break-bulk ships · Product tankers · Fishing vessels · Freetown–Lungi ferries

What we do at Freetown

Eligibility review against the vessel's age, type, class notation and survey history before anything is booked
Programme agreed with the class society and the surveyor attending at Freetown
Hull, rudder, propeller, stern gear, sea chests and appendages inspected to the UWILD scope
Live video, thickness measurement and clearance readings where the programme calls for them
Diving permission cleared with Sierra Leone Ports Authority, with the vessel secured and machinery immobilised
Complete report package submitted for the class file and the drydocking credit

Planning the window at Freetown

The combination of Atlantic swell and rain governs the calendar at Freetown Port, with the heaviest rain from May to October and swell running year-round. The swell here is long-period Atlantic ground swell rather than wind-driven sea, so it reaches the anchorages on days that look calm from the bridge and it is the single biggest cause of a lost in-water window on this coast. 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 container terminal (berths 3–6), bulk and break-bulk berths, Kissy Oil Terminal, inner harbour anchorage, and which of those a vessel ends up at changes the dive plan more than the season does. Teams mobilise via Freetown Lungi (FNA), 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 Freetown

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.

Vessels calling Freetown often wait for a berth in warm, nutrient-rich estuary water, so the flat bottom and sea chests pick up steady barnacle and weed growth, heavier after the rainy season. Fishing vessels based in the harbour, which lie idle between trips, carry the heaviest fouling we see here.

Standard scope of work

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

Eligibility and planning: Vessel eligibility, survey scope and the society's specific requirements are established and agreed before mobilisation.
Hull preparation: Reference markings and cleaning of inspection areas so structure and features can be located and viewed unambiguously.
Systematic inspection: Shell plating, welds, rudder, propeller, sea chests, openings, anodes and appendages inspected to the agreed programme.
Measurement and NDT: Clearance measurement and underwater NDT carried out where the survey scope requires it.
Documentation: Video, stills, measurements and findings compiled into a report package suitable for submission to the classification society.

Full UWILD service details

How we deliver it at Freetown

1
Scope and vessel details
Tell us the vessel, her particulars, the coating specification and the window at Freetown. 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
Sierra Leone Ports Authority 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 Freetown
Divers, compressors, brush carts and cameras mobilise via Freetown Lungi (FNA). Where a vessel is also calling at Pepel, 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 UWILD 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.

Freetown Port at a glance

UN/LOCODE: SLFNA
Port type: State Port
State: Western Area
Country: Sierra Leone
Water body: Sierra Leone River estuary
Port authority: Sierra Leone Ports Authority
Main cargoes: Containers, Rice and bagged general cargo, Break-bulk and project cargo, Fuel, Fishing catch
Crew mobilisation: Freetown Lungi (FNA)
Services here: Hull Cleaning and Hold Cleaning

Frequently asked — UWILD Inspection at Freetown

Do you provide UWILD at Freetown Port?

Yes. Cleanship Marine works Freetown Port (SLFNA) in Western Area, Sierra Leone, covering the container terminal (berths 3–6), bulk and break-bulk berths, Kissy Oil Terminal, inner harbour anchorage. Teams mobilise via Freetown Lungi (FNA) with the full spread.

Is UWILD worthwhile for a ship trading to Freetown?

Often, yes. With no large dry dock nearby, an in-water inspection in place of a docking can save a long deviation — provided class confirms the ship is eligible and the inspection is timed for clear water.

Can UWILD be done while the vessel works cargo at Freetown?

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 Freetown and tell you honestly whether the window you have is enough.

Do you need a diving permit from Sierra Leone Ports Authority?

Yes, and we obtain it. Diving permission from Sierra Leone Ports Authority, 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 Freetown?

Visibility at Freetown Port is moderate in the dry season, low from roughly May to October when rain run-off from the Sierra Leone River clouds the harbour, and the combination of Atlantic swell and rain 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 UWILD on at Freetown?

Feeder container ships, General cargo and break-bulk ships, Product tankers, Fishing vessels, Freetown–Lungi ferries — the traffic at Freetown Port runs to containers, rice and bagged general cargo, break-bulk and project 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 Freetown?

Divers and equipment mobilise via Freetown Lungi (FNA). 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 Pepel or Conakry, one mobilisation is often sized to cover both.

What does UWILD at Freetown cost?

It depends on the vessel's dimensions and wetted area, the fouling state found, the coating specification and the working window available at Freetown. 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 Freetown and you get a scoped price, usually the same working day.

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