Stopover

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Safe and Efficient Vessel Reception

When you opt for the Port de Nantes ‒ Saint Nazaire, you are choosing a safe, high-quality chain of vessel reception services. All the links in the chain work side by side, ahead of the vessel’s arrival on the Loire Estuary up until she departs.

The Harbour Master’s Office: a Key Player in Your Port Call

In charge of vessel reception, the Harbour Master’s Office plays the role of director of operations. It organizes the port calls, supervises vessel movements and liaises with the various maritime services. It also ensures that the rules regarding safety and security are enforced. In its port authority role, the Harbour Master’s Office also polices Nantes ‒ Saint Nazaire Port waters, monitors hazardous cargo, and organizes the efforts to control pollution.

capitainerie officier de port

Maintenance of Water Depths Assured

Before authorizing a vessel to head up the Estuary, the Harbour Master’s Office verifies the depth of water in the channel and at the berths. Several Nantes ‒ Saint Nazaire Port teams are continuously on hand to ensure the highest level of safety for all vessels. Hydrographers regularly supply extremely precise bathymetric survey readings to the Dredging Department. Nantes ‒ Saint Nazaire Port has at its disposal three dredgers guaranteeing optimum fairway depth over a 60-kilometre stretch of water and at the berths alongside quay, permitting vessels to pass at low tide without difficulty.

The Preparation of Your Port Call

Before entering the Estuary, the vessel has to be placed under the authority of a ship’s agent, who supplies the necessary documents to the Harbour Master’s Office, the director of all port call operations. The Harbour Master’s Office then gives its vessel movement authorization, the "green light" for the vessel’s arrival. The ship’s agent can place an order for certain services (bunkering and ship’s supplies, replacement of crew…), and has access at the Port to all the infrastructures and all the partners required for the port call to go smoothly.

Consult the list of port professionals

Download the Nantes ‒ Saint Nazaire Port Reception Booklet

Designed to facilitate your port call at the Port of Nantes ‒ Saint Nazaire, the Reception Booklet contains permanent information in preparation for your arrival and your stay at Nantes ‒ Saint Nazaire Port.

 

The Port-Based Maritime Services on the Loire Estuary

Three sets of operators contribute to the proper execution of all on-water operations: the ship’s pilots, the tugboat operators and the inshore pilots. All possess valuable experience of the specific conditions on the Loire Estuary. The great majority of vessels use the services of a ship’s pilot when heading up or down the Estuary. Ship’s piloting is compulsory for all vessels measuring over 75 metres in length and/or transporting hazardous cargo.

The Loire Estuary ship’s piloting service today comprises 32 ship’s pilots. The pilot boat, the Couronnée IV, is stationed offshore and acts as a forward base for the ship’s pilots, who transfer to the vessels by launch.

During the manoeuvre, the ship’s pilot is in permanent radio contact with the control room of the Harbour Master’s Office and with the tugboat operators. For their part, the inshore pilots have at their disposal detailed mooring plans that are issued by the Harbour Master’s Office and take into account the characteristics of the vessels and of the Estuary (strong currents).

The services operating on the River Loire

Ship’s piloting: Pilotes de Loire

Tugboat operations: Boluda

Inshore piloting: Nantes ‒ Saint Nazaire Port Authority’s Bathymetry, Dredging and Inshore Piloting Department (sectors 1 and 2); Huchet Desmars (sectors 2, 3 and 4).

 

Safety and Security Onshore Also

Fire, pollution, hazardous cargo… safety and security are the Port Authority’s constant preoccupations. The ISPS (International Ship and Port Facility Security) Code applies to all the port infrastructures, delivering a secure interface between land and sea thanks to the installation of perimeter fencing and to the port patrols and port facility security put in place. When it comes to safety and security, Nantes ‒ Saint Nazaire meets the level of requirements for all of Europe’s major ports.

Sécurité ISPS

Nos prestations de services aux navires

A Donges, une équipe spécifique réalise des prestations de services aux navires. L'atelier de Donges de Nantes Saint-Nazaire Port offre une large palette de services : Mise en place de coupées, avitaillement en eau, manutention, réparation ou remplacement d'amarres, lutte antipollution…

Branchement à quai des navires 

Nantes Saint-Nazaire Port a équipé ses sites portuaires de prises de courant-quai pour les navires en escale. Elles sont réparties sur 3 sites : le Quai des Darses et le Quai des Charbonnier à Saint-Nazaire, le terminal pétrolier de Donges et l'avant-port de Saint-Nazaire (en cours de finalisation).

Pour toute demande de branchement, merci de contacter directement la capitainerie.

Consulter la localisation et la répartition des prises