Port of Sandakan, Sabah
In short
Sandakan, Sabah: no ships detected in port from AIS in the last 3 days (as of Oct 6, 2026, 05:10 UTC). Coverage depends on AIS reception in the area.
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- In port now
- 0
- Arrivals, last 24 h
- 0
- Departures, last 24 h
- 0
- Ships nearby, last 6 h
- 0
Vessels near Sandakan, Sabah
Ships Voydar received on AIS near the port in the last 6 hours, most recent first. Being near a port is not a port call; the board above lists calls.
No vessels detected near Sandakan, Sabah in the last 6 hours. As our AIS coverage grows, arrivals and departures will appear here live.
Harbour & facilities
Harbour particulars for Sandakan, Sabah from the NGA World Port Index (WPI port no. 51720). Depths in metres as charted by NGA.
- Harbour size
- Small
- Harbour type
- Coastal (natural)
- Shelter
- Good
- Channel depth
- 9 m
- Anchorage depth
- 16 m
- Cargo pier depth
- 5 m
- Oil terminal depth
- 9 m
- Mean tide
- 2 m
- Pilotage compulsory
- No
- First port of entry
- Yes
- Repairs
- Limited
Source: NGA World Port Index (Pub. 150). Licence: US Government public domain.
Not for navigation.
Forecast
Model forecast for Sandakan, Sabah over the next 72 hours, every 6 hours: wind, gusts, waves and visibility. Times in UTC.
| Time (UTC) | Wind (kn) | From | Gusts (kn) | Waves (m) | Period (s) | Visibility (km) |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2 | 171° | 8 | 0.3 | 4 | 24 | |
| 3 | 21° | 9 | 0.2 | 3 | 8.6 | |
| 2 | 68° | 5 | 0.2 | 3 | 24 | |
| 3 | 131° | 7 | 0.2 | 4 | 21 | |
| 2 | 192° | 9 | 0.2 | 4 | 21 | |
| 1 | 45° | 9 | 0.2 | 4 | 24 | |
| 1 | 30° | 5 | 0.2 | 2 | 24 | |
| 1 | 181° | 5 | 0.2 | 3 | 7.6 | |
| 3 | 148° | 9 | 0.3 | 4 | 16 | |
| 1 | 188° | 8 | 0.2 | 3 | 18 |
Forecast: ECMWF IFS 0.25° + ECMWF WAM, run of Oct 5, 2026, 12:00 UTC. Visibility: NOAA GFS 0.25° + GFS-Wave (WAVEWATCH III), run of Oct 6, 2026, 00:00 UTC. Waves are taken from the wave model's nearest sea point, 24 km away.
Source: ECMWF open data (IFS 0.25° forecasts, ECMWF WAM waves). This service is based on data and products of the European Centre for Medium-Range Weather Forecasts (ECMWF). Source: www.ecmwf.int. Licence: CC BY 4.0. Licence: CC-BY-4.0 + ECMWF Terms of Use.
Source: NOAA GFS 0.25° and GFS-Wave (WAVEWATCH III) forecasts. Forecast: NOAA NCEP GFS / GFS-Wave (WAVEWATCH III). Licence: US Government work (public domain); NOAA Open Data Dissemination.
A model forecast, not an observation. Not for navigation.
Sandakan, Sabah: daily port calls from satellite AIS (IMF PortWatch)
Estimates published by the International Monetary Fund's PortWatch, built from satellite and terrestrial AIS. They cover waters our own receivers do not reach yet. These are the IMF's figures, not Voydar's counts.
The IMF estimates 5 port calls in the 7 days and 23 in the 30 days to Sep 25, 2026. That is 18% less than the same 30 days a year earlier (28).
- Container
- 2
- Tanker
- 14
- Dry bulk
- 3
- General cargo
- 4
- Ro-ro
- 0
Estimated cargo loaded and discharged in those 30 days: 0.1 million tonnes.
09-12 4 | 09-13 1 | 09-14 1 | 09-15 0 | 09-16 2 | 09-17 2 | 09-18 1 | 09-19 1 | 09-20 0 | 09-21 1 | 09-22 1 | 09-23 0 | 09-24 0 | 09-25 2 |
Sources: Kpler; UN Global Platform; IMF PortWatch (portwatch.imf.org). IMF estimates, updated weekly; the latest days are revised. portwatch.imf.org. Counts cover container ships, tankers, dry bulk, general cargo and ro-ro vessels (30-day totals above).
Piracy and anti-shipping incidents nearby
63 incidents within 100 km of the port in NGA's Anti-Shipping Activity Messages (ASAM) archive since Apr 3, 1987. NGA stopped updating the archive in 2024. The most recent:
- IncidentOct 18, 2023Cargo Ship5 km away
MALAYSIA: On 18 October at 1030 local time, an unknown number of robbers boarded the berthed Singapore-flagged container ship MAERSK VALENCIA at Sandakan Port, near position 05-48N 118-05E and stole an outboard engine. The ship reported that the crew were safe.
- IncidentAug 12, 2022Tanker3 km away
MALAYSIA: On 12 August, at 0420 local time, four robbers on a speedboat approached and boarded the anchored Panama-flagged tanker SOUTHERN HAWK at Sandakan Anchorage, near position 05-49N 118-08E. The duty officer noticed movement near the bosun store and raised the alarm, sounded the ship's whistle, and made a PA announcement. Upon hearing the alarm, the robbers escaped with stolen ship's stores. The incident was reported to the local agent.
- IncidentFeb 2, 2022Tanker12 km away
MALAYSIA: On 2 February, at 0540 local time, a robber boarded the Marshall Islands-flagged tanker PS STARS while berthed at Sandakan Port, Sabah, near position 05-47N 118-01E. The on-duty crew member sighted the perpetrator near the forecastle store and raised the alarm. The crew mustered and searched the vessel. The robber escaped and, following a search of the tanker, it was reported that the forecastle store was breached and ship’s stores were stolen. The incident was reported to the local au
- IncidentOct 6, 2021Tanker5 km away
MALAYSIA: On 6 October, two robbers boarded the Cayman Islands-flagged product tanker ORIENTAL ROSE anchored at Sandakan Inner Anchorage, near position 05-48N 118-05E. The robbers were spotted on the forecastle by a duty crewman who informed the bridge. Upon seeing the alerted crew, the perpetrators made their escape with stolen items of ship's stores. The incident was reported to the local agent who informed the Port Authorities.
- IncidentApr 12, 2021Tanker7 km away
On 12 April, an unknown number of robbers boarded a tanker at Sandakan Port, near position 05:48N — 1 18:04E. A duty crewman heard a noise from the vessel's forecastle and spotted one robber. The alarm was raised and the crew was mustered, which resulted in the perpetrator jumping overboard into a waiting small boat. A full search was conducted, which confirmed the padlock securing the forward bosun store room had been broken, but a robber had been spotted before being able to enter. The search
- OtherAug 25, 2020Tanker2 km away
on 25 August at 05 a robbery occurred on the anchored Singapore-tlagged tanker G FABULOUS in the Sandakan Inner Anchorage at position 05:49N - 18:07E. The crew discovered the deck store's padlock roken and eleven drums of paint missing.
Source: NGA Anti-Shipping Activity Messages. This reproduction, partial or complete, of any National Geospatial-Intelligence Agency (NGA), National Imagery and Mapping Agency (NIMA) or Defense Mapping Agency (DMA) product, information or data is not approved, authorized or endorsed by the Secretary of Defense, the Director of National Intelligence, the Director, NGA or any other element of the US Government. The US Government and NGA accept no liability for the accuracy or quality of this reproduction or the use of any NGA, NIMA or DMA products, information or data. Licence: US Government work — "NGA claims no copyright or other intellectual property right".
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