Shipping
Exporting Egyptian marble and granite
We are an Egyptian marble and granite supplier and exporter, shipping by the container from Alexandria. Most of our clients buy from another continent and never visit the factory: the whole process is built so that you can specify, approve and receive stone without leaving your office.
We reply within one working day · Saturday – Thursday, 08:00 – 18:00 Cairo time · WhatsApp +20 106 926 2572
Family business since 1991 · Factory in Alexandria · 50 % in advance · 30 % on approval after production · 20 % before shipping · Reply within one working day
01 — Terms
Incoterms we quote
EXW factory · FOB Alexandria / Port Said / Sokhna · CFR · CIF · DAP. Marine insurance is arranged on CIF; on FOB and CFR terms please confirm your own cover before the vessel sails.
- Loading ports
- Alexandria, Port Said, Sokhna
- Minimum order
- 1 × 20 ft container
- Payment
- 50 % in advance, on order · 30 % after your approval of the finished production · 20 % before shipping
- Currencies
- USD, EUR
02 — Packing
How it travels
Slabs are loaded on steel A-frames, strapped and cornered, with foam separators between polished faces and moisture film over the bundle. Tiles are crated in heat-treated timber, edge-protected, with the batch number stencilled on the crate. Blocks travel on flat racks or in-container on hardwood dunnage with steel cradles.
Every container is photographed loaded, sealed and with the seal number visible, and the photographs go to you before the vessel sails.
Ask for the loading plan with your quotation. It tells you exactly which bundles are in which container and in what order they come off — which matters if the site is taking delivery in phases.
03 — Transport
How it gets to you
Stone moves as ocean freight, by the container, and most of what goes wrong with a shipment goes wrong on land at one end or the other. This is the whole journey, in order.
Sea freight from Alexandria, Port Said, Sokhna
We book with the lines calling at our ports: Alexandria and Port Said for Europe, the Mediterranean and the Atlantic, Sokhna for the Gulf, Asia and East Africa. We quote whichever is cheapest to your destination and give you the sailing and the transit time before you confirm.
Loading the container
A 20 ft dry container is the unit, because stone runs out of payload long before it runs out of space. Mixed loads are normal — different stones, thicknesses and finishes in one box — and the loading plan tells you which bundles come off in which order.
Packed for the sea, not for the lorry
Sea air, condensation inside a steel box and weeks of vibration are what the packing has to survive: slabs on steel A-frames, strapped and cornered, foam between polished faces and film over the bundle; tiles in heat-treated crates, edge-protected; blocks on hardwood dunnage in steel cradles. Every container is photographed loaded and sealed before the vessel sails.
Inland haulage and insurance
Haulage from the factory to the port of loading is ours on every term from FOB upwards. At your end, the leg from the port to site is yours on FOB, CFR and CIF, and ours only on DAP. Marine insurance is arranged on CIF; on FOB and CFR confirm your own cover before the vessel sails.
04 — Container calculator
How much fits in a 20 ft
Indicative loading figures for a 20 ft container at 25 t payload, including timber crating and steel A-frames. Confirm against your own port and road weight limits.
Reading the number
The figure includes an 8 % allowance for timber, A-frames and packing. It is a weight limit, not a volume limit — stone containers almost always run out of payload long before they run out of space, which is why a 20 ft is the standard unit and a 40 ft is rarely worth the freight.
For mixed loads, add the weights rather than the areas. If you are consolidating several stones into one container, send us the list and we will produce the loading plan and confirm the exact payload.
Blocks are quoted and loaded by the cubic metre, not by area — a single 20 ft takes roughly 8 – 10 m³ of block depending on the density.
05 — Documents
The paperwork that comes with it
Commercial invoice & packing list
Itemised by bundle and crate, with net and gross weights and the container number.
Bill of lading
Issued by the line; telex release or original set, as you prefer.
Certificate of origin
Legalised by the Egyptian Chamber of Commerce. Arab and COMESA preference certificates where the destination qualifies.
Fumigation & ISPM 15
All timber crating heat-treated and stamped; fumigation certificate issued on request or where the destination requires it.
Test reports
Laboratory tests arranged for the stone you select — water absorption, flexural strength and abrasion.
06 — Questions we are asked most
Before you order
Can I see the material before you cut it?
Yes, and you should. We photograph the blocks and the sawn bundles in the yard and send them for approval. For large orders clients often send an inspector, or we arrange a third-party inspection.
What if the shipment does not match the sample?
Natural stone varies — that is the material, not a defect. What we commit to is the approved block or batch. If what arrives is not what you approved, we replace it.
Do you supply small quantities?
Our minimum is 1 × 20 ft container. Below that we can consolidate several stones into one container, or point you to a distributor holding our material in your market.
How long does a sample take?
Cut samples go out by courier; ask us on WhatsApp for the dispatch date. Sample cost is credited against your first order.
Can you supply test reports and a CE declaration?
Tell us the destination and the use at quotation stage. For the stone you select we arrange water absorption, flexural strength and abrasion tests at an accredited laboratory, and we confirm with you the documentation your market requires.
Which port should I ship to?
Alexandria for Europe and the Mediterranean, Sokhna for the Gulf, Asia and East Africa, Port Said for transhipment. We quote whichever is cheapest to your destination.
How is payment staged?
In three stages. 50 % in advance, on order, which releases the material into production. 30 % once production is finished and you have approved it — photographs of the actual slabs or the packed bundles. The final 20 % before the container ships. Nothing is loaded until you have seen and approved the stone you are paying for.
Send us a port and a quantity.
We will come back with FOB and CIF prices, a lead time and a loading plan — usually within one working day.
We reply within one working day · Saturday – Thursday, 08:00 – 18:00 Cairo time · WhatsApp +20 106 926 2572
Family business since 1991 · Factory in Alexandria · 50 % in advance · 30 % on approval after production · 20 % before shipping · Reply within one working day