Port of Durban

The Port of Durban is situated on the East Coast of South Africa; 680 nautical miles north-east of Cape Agulhas on a longitude of 31º 02E and Latitude of 29º 52' South.

The port has 57 berths and over 4 000 commercial vessels call at the port each year. It is South Africa's main general cargo and container berth and handles 3 million tons of cargo per year.
Bulk Connections has 4 berths, handles over 3 million tons per year on an average vessel size of 30 000 tons. The largest single uplift is 52 000 tons but draught restrictions on some berths limit vessel sizes to load around 40 000 tons.

90% of the vessels calling at the Terminal are Tramp vessels on a voyage charter. The remaining vessels are on a time charter and call at regular intervals. All vessels are required to give a 14 day nomination period in order to qualify and vessel substitutions no longer constitute a new nomination. The criteria for the berthing and seniority of vessels are governed by the Operating Rules and Regulations, a copy of which can be obtained from Management.

Our specialist bulk handling terminal is situated in the Port of Durban, South Africa. The facility was first equipped with steam-driven mechanical handling equipment to offload rail wagons and load ships for bunkering steam - fired vessels as well as loading coal for exports in 1907.

Today it is widely considered to be one of the most progressive bulk handling facilitiesn not only in South Africa, but a leader in environmental management. In 2009 Bulk Connections won the coveted International Bulk Journal “Environmental Protection award (Cargo handling)” for the development and improvements of environmental standards at the terminal.

Click here for berthing reference data