The Forth Estuary – perfect for anchorage!

If you need to know why the ports on the Forth Estuary are so popular, it’s hard to pin point just one factor – but their perfect fit for vessels needing laying-up and anchorage are high up on the list of many desirable qualities.

The Forth Estuary ports are ideally located, enjoying a perfect position on Scotland’s east coast, and their easy accessibility to vessels from all over the world along with a spot-on geographical location central to the North Sea and the UK oil fields makes them popular with the 3500 ships that visit every single year.

When it comes to anchorage, there are few ports which offer such favourable conditions for laying-up. Being part of an estuary means that they all benefit from natural shelter, keeping vessels away from harsh prevailing winds.

The Forth Estuary is the perfect location for both long term and short term anchorage, a service that we’re happy to be able to organise for our clients. The ports are all easy to reach, with direct connections to all major UK, European and East Coast US cities and cater for all types of vessel with users ranging from small coasters to project cargoes, naval and very large crude carriers (VLCCs).

All services are laid on to ensure that whether you’re laying up your vessel for a long or short term, you’ll have peace of mind. Deep water ports benefit from full Vessel Traffic Service (VTS) and harbour master surveillance, and for larger ships there are twenty-four designated anchorages beyond the main pilotage area, perfect for rigs or semi-submersible vessels. There are more anchorages inside the pilotage area which provide excellent shelter, minimal sea conditions and deep water.

For semi-submersible vessels there are excellent facilities too, you can ballast down in deep water ports to float off and on large rigs and structures. If you need quayside berthing, Dundee is the ideal choice as there’s also room for jack-up rigs, barges and semi sub rigs to berth alongside.

If you’re an owner or operator of a ship that needs to be laid up for whatever reason, contact T Ward Shipping to discuss our peace of mind laying up services. No matter where you decide to lay up your vessel, if you need anchorage, we’ll be able to help you with all aspects of the process, from documentation, to maintenance and inspections.