Richards Bay is South Africa's northernmost and most easterly port, 87 nautical miles (160 km) northeast of Durban and 252 nautical miles (465 km) southwest of Maputo.
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Prior to the mid 1970s, the port complex of Richard's Bay was a large natural lagoon, home to the exuberant wildlife of the coastal region of Northern Kwa-Zulu Natal. In April 1976 the port was officially opened and the one-time lagoon converted into a thriving 19m deep man-made port. In 2015 the port handled 102.657 million tonnes of cargo for the year. A far cry from the unimpressed view expressed by Commissioner Henry Cloete in 1843, when he surveyed the Mhlatuze estuary and declared it to have little or no potential as a future harbour.

The port with its immediate region has become a popular call for international cruising yachts because of the close proximity to game parks and the St Lucia World Heritage Site. Cruising yachts make use of the modern marina (Zululand Yacht Club) near the small craft basin. The port of Richards Bay is open 24 hours a day. The entrance channel is dredged to a permissible draught of 17.5 metres with a -19,5m depth in the entrance channel. Berthing varies between 8m (small craft berth) and 19m (coal berths).
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INBOUND FORMALITIES
​On arrival off the harbour, call Port Control on CHANNEL 12 to request permission to enter harbour – please note, Port Control will not respond to calls made on Channel 16. This is a commercial harbour, and you need to stay outside the shipping lane as advised.
If you are coming in to Richards Bay as your first port of entry to South Africa, on entering the harbour, proceed to the Small Craft Harbour dock, Tuzi Gazi. This is the 2nd entry channel on entering (look for two yellow buoys in the channel). Tie up on the concrete wall in front of the Dros Restaurant to await Port officials. Do NOT go straight to Zululand Yacht Club, as Immigration will not clear you in there.
 
IMMIGRATION:
If you have registered through OSASA, OSASA will have obtained your health pratique from Port Health. Once you have arrived, please send a whatsapp or email to OSASA to say you are at the dock, and OSASA will advise the Port authorities, Immigration and Customs, to visit you at your boat in the Small Craft Harbour - please DO NOT leave your boat before the formalities have been concluded. Ensure you are flying the Yellow Q flag. 

 

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