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Cattewater (Plymouth)

Cattewater (Plymouth)

Latitude: 50° 21'N
Longitude: 04° 07'W
Country: England

Ownership: Cattewater Harbour Commission
Type: Trust
Usage: Leisure, Fishing, Commercial
Contact name: Capt. Tim Charlesworth, Harbour Master & Chief Executive
Address: 2 The Barbican , Plymouth, PL1 2LR
Telephone no: 01752 665934
E-mail: info@plymouthport.org.uk
Website: www.plymouthport.org.uk


About Cattewater (Plymouth)

Located on the south coast of Devon, Plymouth is the largest city on the South coast and boasts one of the world’s finest natural harbours. Apart from the Naval dockyard, the harbour comprises of three separate Commercial harbours (Millbay - primarily passenger ferries operated by Associated British Ports; Sutton Harbour - fishing/leisure; and the Cattewater Harbour - offering access to privately owned facilities for both commercial shipping and leisure craft).

Plymouth has excellent rail, road, air and sea links, and the Cattewater Harbour, located at the eastern end of the City’s waterfront, is well placed to handle vessels up to 150 metres in length.

Channels leading to the commercial berths at Cattedown Wharves are dredged to 5 metres below datum (2 metres below datum leading to Pomphlett Aggregate export terminal) and vessels constrained by their draught can be accommodated in windows in the tidal cycle and lie safely alongside within dredged pocket berths.

Imports include refined clean oil products, agribulks, timber and specialist aggregates. Exports include both primary and secondary aggregates, china clay, grains and scrap metal. There is also a large fish processing plant, which receives fish on a seasonal basis, and exports frozen fish products.

The harbour is also the location of Victoria Wharf, which handles vessels of up to 8,000 dwt, with a maximum beam of 18m and length of up to 140m. The port offers extensive open and covered storage and modern cargo handling equipment, to enable quick despatch of vessels.

The Cattewater is home to two leading marine civil engineering companies who use the port as a mobilisation base for the many and varied contracts they undertake.

Steeped in maritime history, Plymouth enjoys superb waterside leisure facilities and has an excellent reputation for hosting premier ocean races and world-class water events.

The offices of the Cattewater Harbour Commission are located opposite the historical ‘Mayflower Steps’, site of the start of the Pilgrim Fathers’ epic voyage to America aboard the Mayflower.

The Cattewater Harbour Commission exists by an Act of Parliament as the navigation and conservancy authority for the Cattewater Harbour as well as civil pilotage authority for the Port of Plymouth.

In broad terms it is required to maintain and order safe navigation for all manner of craft which might present themselves to the harbour by surveying and dredging the channels, maintaining navigation marks and lights, providing pilotage services and appropriate traffic regulation within the Cattewater and pilotage services to the remainder of the civil port.

In order to do this the Commission is empowered to charge ship, cargo and passenger dues to defray costs and to maintain financial reserves. Charges for pilotage services are based on the need to provide a safe and efficient service and meet customer requirements, both now and in the future.

Four administrative staff are employed, together with four pilots, four pilot boatmen and three harbour staff. The pilot boat ('Maker'), and an 18 tonne bollard pull tug ('Prince Rock') are operated by the respective departments, and a mooring maintenance barge and workboat ('Pronto') is used for various tasks around the harbour.


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