Ship Thickness Measurement at Kuwait's Ports and Oil Terminals

Inspection services for ships at Kuwait

Each service has its own page with the method, the class requirements and what the report contains.

Where Gauging Is Done in Kuwait

At Shuwaikh and Shuaiba, gauging is done alongside during cargo operations, with access arranged through the agent and the port's security. Container and general cargo calls allow deck, hatch, accessible tank and piping work; bulk carriers discharging over several days allow holds to be gauged as they empty. The HEISCO shipyard at Shuwaikh docks smaller ships on its floating dock and shiplift and repairs others afloat at its jetties, which makes it the place for in-dock gauging on offshore support vessels, tugs, landing craft and dredgers working in Kuwaiti waters.

For tankers, the anchorages off the oil terminals are the realistic workplace. Terminal rules at Mina Al Ahmadi and the other oil ports restrict work on board during loading, and gas-free cargo tanks are rare on a tanker arriving to load. Ballast tanks, deck structure, deck piping and void spaces can be gauged at anchor, and cargo-tank work is planned for a tank-cleaning or docking period. Large tankers from Kuwait generally dock in Bahrain, the UAE or further afield, and gauging in Kuwait can provide the first measured view of the ship before that docking.

• Shuwaikh Port — deck, hatch cover, hold and piping gauging on container, general cargo and ro-ro ships during cargo operations
• Shuaiba Port — hold, tank top and hopper gauging on bulk carriers discharging industrial and construction cargo
• HEISCO shipyard, Shuwaikh — in-dock hull, sea chest and tank gauging on offshore support vessels, tugs, landing craft and dredgers
• Mina Al Ahmadi anchorage — ballast tank, deck structure and deck piping gauging on crude tankers before or after loading, with terminal agreement
• Al-Zour — hull, ballast tank and deck piping gauging on LNG carriers and product tankers, planned around terminal rules and the ship's stay
• Kuwait Bay anchorages — pre-purchase and condition gauging on ships waiting for berths at the commercial ports

Port State Control, Vetting and Fuel Rules in Kuwait

Kuwait is a member of the Riyadh MoU, and port state control at its ports follows that regime's inspection practice. For tankers, though, the stricter examination usually comes from vetting: oil majors and terminal operators inspect tankers before accepting them, and older crude carriers face questions about structural condition that only measured data can answer. CAP, run by each class society as a voluntary condition rating, is commonly requested for tankers over about 15 years old, and its gauging scope covers cargo tank structure as well as ballast spaces.

The northern Gulf lies outside any emission control area, and the global 0.50% sulphur limit applies. Many of the crude carriers loading in Kuwait run scrubbers, and their wash-water and overboard piping is an established gauging item. Kuwait's national fleet, regional owners and international tanker operators all trade here, and the ships that call most often gain most from tracking corrosion over time. For ESP tankers, thickness measurement in Kuwait before the third renewal survey, or any later one, can show the owner the likely extent of steel renewal before the ship reaches the yard and the off-hire period is fixed.

Wherever a ship is outside a sulphur emission control area, the global 0.50% sulphur cap applies, and many of the ships calling at Kuwait meet it with an exhaust gas cleaning system rather than compliant fuel. Scrubber wash-water piping, the overboard discharge and the hull penetration around it corrode quickly in service, especially on open-loop systems, and are worth adding to the gauging scope.

How a thickness measurement job runs at Kuwait

A gauging job at Kuwait runs the same way whatever the ship type. The sequence below is what the superintendent, the attending surveyor and the yard can expect from us.

Kuwait International Airport has direct flights from several Indian cities, and the commercial ports and oil terminals are all reached by road from Kuwait City. Shuwaikh and Shuaiba need port passes arranged by the ship's agent through the Kuwait Ports Authority; the oil terminals add their own security and safety induction, and anchorage work needs a launch booked by the agent. Indian technicians travel on Kuwaiti business visit visas, which we apply for once the ship's dates are firm. For any work at or off an oil terminal, we confirm access in writing before the team travels.

• Send the vessel name or IMO number, ship type, class society, the survey due (annual, intermediate, renewal survey number, CAP or owner's condition survey), the port and dates, and the scope you expect.
• We confirm the scope against the class rules for that survey, prepare the thickness measurement plan with frame and section references, and say whether the measurement will be credited to a class survey.
• Mobilisation is planned around visa lead times and the vessel's schedule; the ship's agent arranges port access, and the yard or ship arranges staging, lighting, ventilation and gas-free certificates.
• Gauging with calibrated ultrasonic thickness gauges: through sound coatings only where the gauge's through-coating mode has been verified on a coated reference, otherwise on cleaned bare steel, with every reading tied to its frame, strake and location on the sketch.
• Readings are compared with original thicknesses as work proceeds; substantial and excessive corrosion and any cracks are reported to the attending surveyor and the superintendent the same day.
• The final report is issued on the class thickness-measurement formats with sketches, a summary of locations exceeding the allowable margins, piping tables where piping was in scope, and the gauge calibration and technician certificates.

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