LaycanDeskEgypt to West Africa freight - Alexandria, Damietta and El Arish to Conakry, Abidjan, Tema and Lagos
Bagged salt, cement and clinker, gypsum and bagged fertilizer from the Egyptian Med coast to the Gulf of Guinea on geared Handysize and Handymax tonnage. Alexandria, Abu Qir, Damietta and El Arish to Conakry, Abidjan, Tema, Lagos and Onne: bagged salt, cement and clinker, gypsum and bagged fertilizer on geared Handysize and Handymax ships and coasters, fixed on the loading and discharge rates rather than the distance.
Egypt's Mediterranean coast has become a bulk exporter to the Gulf of Guinea. Alexandria and its stockpiles inside the port load solar salt in bags and in bulk at about 14 metres of draft; El Arish loads washed salt, cement and clinker at 14 metres for ships up to 50,000 dwt; Damietta works 14.5 metres and loads gypsum and clinker at 4,000 to 7,000 tonnes a day; Abu Qir is the fertilizer berth. Egyptian salt loadings ran to 2.9 million tonnes in January and February 2026 alone, more than double the same months of 2025. The West African end is the constraint: Conakry, Tema and Onne receive bagged cargo by ship's gear at 1,000 to 2,000 tonnes a day, and most berths there cannot take a Supramax's draft, so the trade runs on geared Handysize and Handymax ships of 25,000 to 50,000 dwt, with coasters for 5,000 to 12,000 tonne parcels. The passage is two to three weeks through Gibraltar, and the rainy season from May to October slows bag discharge.
The desk works this lane on the port time. A bagged stem is priced on the bag weight, the loading and discharge rates and whether the ship's cranes or shore gear do the work, far more than on the distance, so those are the first things we ask a charterer for, together with the producer, the quantity, the discharge rotation, the laycan, the commission and the charterer's name. Owners with geared Handysize and Handymax tonnage opening in the East Med, the Black Sea or West Africa send positions, and the desk holds them against the salt, clinker and gypsum stems on the board; the 13 September sweep sighted 145 hulls at Abu Qir and 58 at Damietta. Every counterparty is screened before an offer and every ship by IMO number, and the charterer hears back with named ships, their draft and their open dates. We work by email.
Load ports
- Alexandria (salt, about 14 m)
- Abu Qir (bagged fertilizer)
- Damietta (gypsum, clinker, 14.5 m, 4,000–7,000 t/day)
- El Arish (washed salt, cement, clinker, 14 m, up to 50,000 dwt)
Discharge ports
- Conakry (bagged salt, clinker)
- Abidjan (salt, gypsum)
- Tema (bagged cargo by ship's gear)
- Lagos and Onne (gypsum, clinker, bagged fertilizer)
Typical parcels
- Bagged salt 10,000–30,000 t, geared Handysize
- Cement and clinker 25,000–50,000 t
- Gypsum 15,000–50,000 t
- Coaster parcels 5,000–12,000 t
Ships that carry it
The cargo itself, on Commbril
Questions charterers and owners ask
Why does this lane need a geared ship?
Because Conakry, Tema, Onne and most of the Gulf of Guinea have no shore cranes for bagged work and limited draft. A gearless ship cannot discharge there at all, and a Supramax often cannot berth, so the trade runs on geared Handysize and Handymax tonnage of 25,000 to 50,000 dwt and on coasters for smaller lots.
What decides the freight on a bagged salt or fertilizer stem?
The loading and discharge rates and the laytime terms. Bags by hook at 1,000 to 2,000 tonnes a day in West Africa against 4,000 to 7,000 tonnes a day of bulk at Damietta means the discharge port sets the voyage length. Send the bag weight, the rates and who supplies the gear and the stem can be priced.
What drafts do the Egyptian load ports offer?
Alexandria about 14 metres, El Dekheila deeper, Damietta 14.5 metres and El Arish 14 metres for ships up to about 50,000 dwt. The discharge port is almost always the tighter of the two; state both.
What must I send to get a named ship?
Cargo and packing, bag weight if bagged, the producer or shipper and loading berth, quantity and tolerance, the discharge rotation with quantity at each port, load and discharge rates with laytime terms, laycan, commission and the charterer's name. We come back with named geared ships, their draft and open dates.