Coil Tubing Units Shipping
A coiled tubing unit ships as its truck or trailer with the reel and injector, by RoRo or as breakbulk. The reel is often the heaviest single piece.
Overview
Coiled tubing units combine a tubing reel, an injector head, a power pack and a control cab on a truck or trailer, or as skids for offshore work. Truck- and trailer-mounted units ship by RoRo from Houston, Baltimore or Brunswick where a lane serves the destination, provided the axle loads with the reel fitted are within the carrier's ramp limits.
A full reel of tubing is very heavy, so the reel often ships separately as breakbulk or on a flat rack: the 40 ft flat rack carries about 39,000 kg on a 12.06 m deck. Skid units go on flat racks, and spares and tools go in 40 ft high cubes.
The tubing is flushed and preserved, the injector is secured in its transport frame, and hydraulic systems are checked for leaks.
We have no coiled tubing units in our own loading records, so this page sets out the method rather than a past plan. We plan from the unit's transport drawing and axle loads before booking.
Send the make, model and serial number, the reel size and whether the injector, control cab and reel ship as one trailer or separate skids. The coil on the reel is heavy, so the reel weight decides the method. Drain fluids before shipping.
Cost depends on whether the unit ships as one trailer or as separate skids. A trailer unit goes by RoRo, priced by the cubic metres of the trailer, and a heavy reel on its own often ships as breakbulk, priced by weight or volume, whichever is greater.
Typical Specifications
| Units | Tubing reel, injector head, power pack, control cabin |
|---|---|
| Mount | Truck or trailer |
| Weight | 25 - 50+ metric tons (package) |
| Transport | RoRo, flat rack, or breakbulk |
Recommended Shipping Methods
Worked example
Truck-mounted CTU, 1.5 in tubing string: 42 ft 8 in / 13 m long, 8 ft 6 in / 2.6 m wide, 13 ft 5 in / 4.1 m high, 70,500 lb / 32,000 kg.
The ladder below is worked out from these figures. Larger or smaller units of the same type can land on a different rung.
Cheapest first: the shipping cost ladder
We price every machine from the bottom rung up. A machine only moves up a rung when a measurement rules out the cheaper method.
Truck-mounted CTU, 1.5 in tubing string is 42 ft 8 in / 13 m long, more than a 39 ft 7 in / 12.06 m flat rack deck, so it drives or tows aboard a RoRo vessel.
- Rung 1
Container
Lowest cost
When: Fits through a 7 ft 8 in / 2.34 m × 8 ft 6 in / 2.58 m door and under 59,500 lb / 27,000 kg, whole or after we take off the bucket, boom, cab or wheels.
- Rung 2
Flat rack
Mid cost
When: Too wide or tall for a container door, but within 14 ft 9 in / 4.5 m wide, 13 ft 1 in / 4 m tall and 86,000 lb / 39,000 kg on one rack.
- Rung 3
RoRo
Mid cost
Best fit for Truck-mounted CTU, 1.5 in tubing string
When: Drives or tows aboard, under 19 ft 8 in / 6 m tall and 110 US tons / 100,000 kg, going to a port with regular RoRo sailings.
- Rung 4
Breakbulk
Highest cost
When: Past flat-rack and roll-trailer limits, or shipped as modules lifted aboard piece by piece.
RoRo (Roll-on/Roll-off)
RecommendedFor drivable truck-mounted units within limits.
Flat Rack Container
RecommendedFor reels, injectors, and skid units.
Breakbulk / Heavy Lift
For heavy or over-dimension packages.
Heavy Haul Trucking
RecommendedInland transport to the port.
Container, flat rack, RoRo or breakbulk?
01Container
- Work needed
- We partially disassemble when needed (bucket, boom, cab, wheels), or take larger machines further apart across several high-cubes and open-tops, then crate, block and lash every part.
- Destinations
- Widest: almost every port worldwide, plus inland delivery by rail.
- Typical cost
- Usually the lowest, with no out-of-gauge surcharges.
- Protection
- Sealed steel box; loose parts and attachments travel locked inside.
- Best for
- Most machines: compact ones as they are, others after partial disassembly, and large ones split across several containers.
02Flat rack
- Work needed
- Ships assembled, blocked and lashed. Surcharges apply when wider than 2.4 m or taller than about 1.95 m.
- Destinations
- Most container ports, on the same vessels as containers.
- Typical cost
- Moderate; rises with every centimetre out of gauge.
- Protection
- Open to the weather; we protect cabs, electronics and hydraulics.
- Best for
- Excavators, dozers and loaders too wide for a container door.
03RoRo
- Work needed
- Drives on assembled; non-runners go on a roll trailer.
- Destinations
- Fewer destinations: regular lanes to Europe, West Africa, the Middle East, Oceania and parts of Latin America.
- Typical cost
- Often competitive for large self-propelled machines where a lane exists.
- Protection
- Below deck, but loose items and attachments cannot ride inside the cab.
- Best for
- Running machines going to a port with regular RoRo sailings.
04Breakbulk
- Work needed
- Lifted aboard piece by piece by ship’s or shore cranes, on its own skids or cradle, then stowed and lashed in the hold or on deck.
- Destinations
- Ports with breakbulk berths and heavy-lift cranes; sailings are booked voyage by voyage.
- Typical cost
- Usually the highest for a single small machine; often the only option for the largest pieces.
- Protection
- In the hold or lashed on deck; we crate, wrap and protect exposed parts.
- Best for
- Pieces too large or heavy for a flat rack or roll trailer: transformers, process modules, mining trucks, crane sections.
Handling & Preparation Requirements
- Secure the tubing reel and injector head
- Protect the control cabin and electronics
- Drain/secure fluids per carrier rules
- Reduce fluids and disconnect batteries for ocean shipment
- Document the package list and condition
Common Models We Ship
- NOV coil tubing units
- Stewart & Stevenson CTU
- Hydra Rig / Halliburton units
- SLB / well intervention packages
Where coil tubing units shipments go wrong
Mistakes we see on coil tubing units bookings, and what avoids them.
- Used coiled tubing has a fatigue life tracked run by run, so a reel shipped without its string log may have to be scrapped by the buyer's engineers.
- The injector gooseneck guide arch is long and easily bent, so it needs its own crate and a separate line on the packing list rather than riding loose on the unit.
- Tubing left full of brine or under nitrogen must be blown down, depressurised, and capped at both ends, or the carrier may treat the reel as a pressurised item.
Frequently Asked Questions
How do coil tubing units ship?
Drivable truck-mounted units can use RoRo; reels and injectors often ship on flat racks.
Is the reel shipped separately?
Depending on the unit, the reel may ship with the truck or as a separate flat-rack piece.
Do you ship complete intervention packages?
Yes, we consolidate the full coil tubing/well-intervention package for export.
Sources
Every figure on this page comes from the documents below, each checked on the date shown. Carriers and authorities revise them, so we confirm the current figure when we book.
- [1]Seaway Project Cargo: about the company, checked October 22, 2026
- [2]Seaway Project Cargo country shipping guides, checked October 22, 2026
Plan your shipment
Import Duty & Tax Estimator
Estimate duty and VAT on the CIF value for 70+ destinations.
Dimensional Weight Calculator
Work out chargeable weight before you book.
Container Space Calculator
See how your cargo fits in 20ft, 40ft, and HC containers.
Route Finder
Load port, sailings, duty and rules for a machine and destination.
Ready to Ship Your Coil Tubing Units?
Send the make, model and pickup location. We quote coil tubing units by container, flat rack or RoRo from the U.S. port that suits the machine.