LaycanDeskNigeria urea coastal freight - Lekki and Onne to Abidjan, Tema, Dakar and Douala
Granular urea from the Lagos and Port Harcourt plants on short-sea Handysize, MPP and coaster tonnage to Ivorian, Ghanaian, Senegalese and Cameroonian blenders, bulk with quay bagging or bagged in the hold. Nigeria exported urea to 28 countries in 2025 and 94,300 tonnes of it went to Côte d'Ivoire, 33,400 to Senegal and 30,100 to Ghana, one to three days' steaming from the Lekki and Onne loading quays. The desk works the lane on the draft at each discharge port, the bulk-versus-bagged choice, the ECOWAS and CEMAC duty positions and the payment mechanics of a voyage shorter than the document courier.
Two plants make the lane. The Lekki Free Zone complex outside Lagos loads at a bulk quay quoted at 172 metres and 14 metres of water, and the Eleme complex at Port Harcourt exports through its own terminal at Onne, whose urea berth is built for ships of 30,000 to 35,000 dwt and up to 180 metres, about a million tonnes a year. From there Abidjan is two to three days and Douala one to two. Abidjan has taken 14 to 16 metres through the widened Vridi canal since 2019 and lands most of the region's straight fertilizer for its blenders; Tema's bulk berths were dredged in 2025 to 14 and 12 metres; Dakar's three bulk berths work ships to about 30,000 tonnes on 10 to 11.5 metres with bagging stations on the quay; Douala is a river port with a tide-limited channel of roughly 8 metres at high water, so a laden Handysize goes to Kribi (16 metres) instead or the lot is cut to fit.
Bulk with mobile bagging on the quay into 50-kilo lined bags is the standard receiving practice at Abidjan, Tema and Dakar; pre-bagged cargo in the hold discharges slowly by sling and tears in the humidity, and containers are for trial lots of a few hundred tonnes. The duty split decides the buyer's number before freight does: Côte d'Ivoire, Ghana and Senegal sit in ECOWAS, where Nigerian urea can enter under the ETLS only if both the producer and the product are approved, while Cameroon is CEMAC and applies its external tariff and a 1 percent import levy. Charterers send the plant and loading quay, quantity and tolerance, bulk or bagged, discharge port and its draft, load and discharge rates with laytime terms, laycan, commission and the blender of record; without the producer and the buyer nothing goes to owners. Because the ship arrives before the original bills, payment is agreed as a letter of credit at sight or against copy documents before fixing. We work by email.
Load ports
- Lekki Free Zone quay, Lagos (172 m, 14 m draft, bulk)
- Onne fertilizer terminal, Port Harcourt (30,000–35,000 dwt, LOA to 180 m)
- Granular urea 46% N; producer's assay at load
- Nigerian export filing: Form NXP and pre-shipment inspection before clearance
Discharge ports
- Abidjan (Vridi canal 14–16 m since 2019; no length limit)
- Tema (bulk berths 13 and 14 dredged to 14 m and 12 m in 2025)
- Dakar (bulk berths Q3, Q5, Q8; 10–11.5 m; ships to about 30,000 t; quay bagging)
- Douala (river channel about 8 m at high water) or Kribi (16 m) for Cameroon
Typical parcels
- Bulk 10,000–25,000 t Handysize, quay bagging at discharge
- Part-cargo 5,000–8,000 t on a 20,000–30,000 dwt bulker, two discharge ports
- Coaster or MPP 3,000–6,000 t for Douala on the tide
- Trial lots 500–1,500 t in 20-ft containers, bagged
Ships that carry it
The cargo itself, on Commbril
Questions charterers and owners ask
Bulk or bagged for West African discharge?
Bulk, bagged on the quay. Abidjan, Tema and Dakar receive urea in bulk by ship's grab into hoppers with mobile bagging lines filling 50-kilo lined bags straight onto trucks; Dakar's bulk terminal has three bagging stations. Bags stowed in the hold discharge slowly by sling and tear in the humidity. Containers are for a first trial of a few hundred tonnes to a new blender, or for Douala where the river draft rules out a laden Handysize.
What draft can I load for Douala?
Not a laden Handysize. The Wouri channel's charted minimum is about 6.1 to 6.5 metres and roughly 8.4 metres at high water, the port quotes 200 metres and 8 metres, and the P&I clubs warn about arrival drafts above 8 metres. A Cameroon bulk lot either goes to Kribi (16 metres) with trucking to Douala, arrives lightened after an Abidjan or Tema call, or moves on a coaster sized to the tide.
Does Nigerian urea enter Côte d'Ivoire or Ghana duty-free?
Only under the ECOWAS Trade Liberalisation Scheme, and for industrial goods the scheme requires both the producing company and the product to be approved; a certificate of origin alone is not enough. Ask the seller for its ETLS approval number before the price is agreed. Cameroon is in CEMAC, not ECOWAS, so Nigerian urea there pays the CEMAC external tariff and the 1 percent import levy; confirm the 2026 tariff line with the customs broker.
What must I send to get a named ship?
Producer and loading quay, quantity and tolerance, bulk or bagged, discharge port with its draft and bagging arrangement, load and discharge rates with laytime terms, laycan, commission, payment mechanism and the blender of record. Handysize, MPP and coaster owners trading the Gulf of Guinea send name, IMO number, dwt, gear, open port and dates to desk-a005f1@in.laycandesk.com.