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Alang Ship Breaking Yard (India)

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Alang Ship Breaking Yard cruise port

Region
Asia

Local Time
2024-11-21 23:02

min: 69 °F (20 °C) / max: 82 °F (28 °C) 78°F
25.6°C
Wind: 32°/ 5 m/s Gust: 6.5 m/sWind: 32°/ 5 m/s Gust: 6.5 m/sGentle breeze
5 m/s
Min / Max Temperature82 °F / 28 °C
69 °F / 21 °C
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Alang is a small town in India's Gujarat State (Saurashtra Region, Bhavnagar District) with population around 20,000. Since the early-1990s, Alang is worldwide known for the location of its shipbreaking yard (world's largest). There, retired marine vessels (cargo and passenger) are beached/grounded then dismantled. Some vessels (without their own power) are towed.

The 1983-founded Alang Yard is also officially classified as "Port Alang" (locode INALA) and dubbed "Alang Ship Breaking Port". Here are dismantled and recycled ~50% of the world's salvaged ships (at total 153 shibreaking plots), thus it is considered the largest ship graveyard on the planet. The beaches where the vessels are broken up are on Gulf of Khambat, approx 50 km (31 mi) southeast of the district's capital city (Bhavnagar). Approx 175 km (110 mi) to the southwest from Alang is Diu Island. Approx 280 km (170 mi) to the south is Mumbai (Bombay) - direct/sea distance.

At Alang's beaches are dismantled all types of vessels, including oil-gas tankers, boxships (container carriers), bulk-cargo carriers, Ro-Ro (car ferries), passenger ships (ferries and cruise liners), naval ships. The vessels are beached during high tide. When the tide recedes, hundreds of workers start to break up each ship. Most of the machinery and furniture are salvaged, the rest is for scrap. The work is hard and dangerous, with numerous serious injuries (even deaths) happening on a daily basis.

There are plans to modernize the Alang Shipyard since India and Japan signed an MoU (Memorandum of Understanding) for technology and financial help from Japan. The public-private partnership aims to upgrade Alang's shipbreaking and recycling operations according to the latest international safety-, health- and environmental regulations, as well as to make it IMO-compliant.

The Yard's largest vessel so far is the supertanker "MS Seawise Giant" (oil tanker, IMO 7381154, 1979-built, 2010-scrapped as "MS Mont"). This was also the world's longest ship - with LOA length 459 m (1504 ft), draft 25 m (81 ft), GT 260941 tons, DWT 564763 tons.

Note: Due to the Coronavirus crisis and IMO's new regulations (marine engine upgrades for using low-sulfur fuels and LNG), in 2020-2021 were scrapped 15 cruise liners - an unprecedented number in comparison to previous years, and even 5-year periods. In 2020, the average ship scrap metal (DWT-deadweight tonnage) prices in Alang rose to ~USD 400 per ton (from ~$200), in Aliaga - to ~USD 300 per ton (from ~$100). EU-flagged ships' scrap values were ~USD 100-200 per ton as these vessels require dismantling at EU-certified yards. Ship scrap prices in the USA were USD 80-90 per ton.

Cruise ships scrapped at Alang

Next are listed some of the Alang-scrapped cruise ships and converted classic ocean liners. In brackets is the vessel's year of birth and death.

Next video is the 70-min long Canadian documentary film (by Michael Kot) titled "Shipbreakers" (2004) focusing on Alang Yard's deplorable working conditions.

 

Currently, the world's top-4 largest shipbreaking yards are Alang (India), Chittagong (Bangladesh), Gadani (Pakistan), Aliaga (Turkey). For CruiseMapper's collection of destroyed cruise liners see our Scrapped Cruise Ships.

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