LaycanDeskOman limestone freight to India and Bangladesh - Salalah, Duqm and Sohar to Kandla, the east coast and Chattogram
Steel-flux and cement-grade limestone from the Salalah, Duqm and Sohar quarries in Supramax and Handysize lots to Indian steel and cement ports and to Bangladeshi grinders through Kutubdia and Chattogram outer anchorage lighterage. Limestone is the one Omani export mineral still sold and shipped by the quarries themselves: the Raysut and Salalah quarries load Supramaxes for Indian steelworks and cement plants, and Bangladeshi cement mills take Handysize to Supramax cargoes at Kutubdia and Chattogram outer anchorage for lighterage into the rivers. The desk works grade against IS 10345, the discharge draft and the Bangladeshi duty split between boulder and other limestone.
Oman's limestone leaves from the Arabian Sea coast: Raysut at Salalah for the Mughsail and Uyun quarries, Duqm's dry-bulk terminal, and Sohar and the Shinas quarries for the Gujarat trade. Indian buyers split into steel and cement. Steelworks buy flux against IS 10345:2004, Grade 1 for steelmaking at 53 percent CaO minimum and 1.5 percent SiO2 and MgO maximum, Grade 2 for ironmaking at 44 percent CaO and 6 percent SiO2, sized 30 to 80 or 15 to 75 millimetres, into Kandla, Mundra, Hazira, Paradip, Visakhapatnam, Gangavaram and Dhamra; limestone imports are policy-free under heading 2521 with 5 percent basic duty plus surcharge, and only low-silica LD flux below 1 percent SiO2 takes line 2521 00 10. Cement plants buy on their own CaO and MgO limits. Bangladesh has almost no quarry limestone, so its grinders import it the way they import clinker.
Into Bangladesh the ship never reaches the mill. Ocean tonnage anchors at Kutubdia or Chattogram outer anchorage and discharges by its own grabs into river lighters that carry the stone up the Karnaphuli, Shitalakshya and Meghna; loading, laytime and the monsoon window from June to September are fixed around that lighterage. Duty matters as much as freight: under the operative tariff, boulder limestone (2521.00.10) carries a total tax incidence of about 46.5 percent and other limestone (2521.00.90) about 72 percent, so the size fraction the mill orders changes the landed cost more than the freight does. Charterers send the quarry, grade and size, quantity and tolerance, load and discharge rates with laytime terms, laycan, commission and the buyer of record; without the quarry and the buyer nothing goes to owners. Geared Supramax, Ultramax and Handysize owners opening in the Arabian Sea or Bay of Bengal send positions. Limestone is an IMSBC Group C cargo. We work by email.
Load ports
- Raysut, Salalah (Mughsail quarry; the largest limestone exporter in Salalah, 4.2 Mtpa capacity, 2.6 Mt exported in its latest reported year)
- Salalah (Teetam / Uyun quarries)
- Duqm dry-bulk terminal
- Sohar and Shinas (Gujarat-facing quarries; see the Oman to India page)
Discharge ports
- Kandla (tidal berths, about 12–14 m), Mundra and Hazira (14 m and more)
- Paradip, Visakhapatnam, Gangavaram, Dhamra (steelworks, deep berths)
- Kutubdia OPL and Chattogram outer anchorage (lighterage into river barges)
- Mongla anchorage on smaller Handysize lots
Typical parcels
- Steel flux 50,000–60,000 t, geared Supramax / Ultramax
- Cement-grade lump 25,000–45,000 t, Handysize / Handymax
- Bangladesh lots sized to lighterage turnaround, 30,000–55,000 t
- IMSBC Group C; trimmed level; moisture set in the contract
Ships that carry it
The cargo itself, on Commbril
Questions charterers and owners ask
Who ships Omani limestone, the quarry or a state exporter?
The quarry. Oman Minerals Trading Company took the exclusive right to export gypsum and chromite from June 2026, but limestone is outside its mandate, so the limestone quarries sell FOB or CFR themselves and may fix their own ships. That is why the limestone charterer can be the miner, the Indian buyer or a Bangladeshi trader, and we ask which before anything goes to owners.
What grade do Indian steel mills specify?
IS 10345:2004, flux-grade limestone for iron and steel making. Grade 1 (steelmaking) is CaO 53 percent minimum, MgO 1.5 and SiO2 1.5 percent maximum, 30 to 80 millimetres; Grade 2 (ironmaking) is CaO 44 percent minimum, MgO 4 and SiO2 6 percent maximum, 15 to 75 millimetres, with under and oversize 5 percent each. Cement buyers use their own CaO and MgO limits, and we ask for them rather than assume.
How does discharge work in Bangladesh?
By lighterage. Supramaxes and Handysizes anchor at Kutubdia or Chattogram outer anchorage and discharge with their own cranes and grabs into river barges, which take the stone to mills on the Karnaphuli, Shitalakshya and Meghna. The Karnaphuli berths themselves are too shallow for a laden bulker. Discharge slows in the June to September monsoon, and Bangladeshi duty is far lower on boulder limestone than on other fractions, so the mill's size spec is the first thing to fix.
What must I send to get a named ship?
Quarry and load port, grade and size, quantity and tolerance, load and discharge rates with laytime terms, discharge port or anchorage, laycan, commission and the buyer of record. Owners send name, IMO number, dwt, gear and grabs, open port and dates to desk-a005f1@in.laycandesk.com; a ship is put against a stem only after her IMO number has cleared our checks.