How much gypsum and limestone does Djibouti import?

Little, on the declared record. Djibouti's own filings show 1,714 to 2,326 t a year of HS 2520 in 2021-2023, mostly bagged plaster at several hundred dollars a tonne, and 292 to 440 t of limestone. The bulk lots on record are Oman's 2023 shipments of 24,452 t of gypsum and 24,400 t of limestone; in 2025 exporters declared only 565 t and 434 t. A new buyer is therefore setting up a lane rather than joining a regular one.

Does Ethiopia import gypsum or limestone through Djibouti?

Not on the declared record: Ethiopia reported 115 t of gypsum and 55 t of limestone imports in 2023 and has filed no data since. Djibouti is Ethiopia's sea gateway, linked by the 759 km railway from Doraleh, so a cargo for an Ethiopian receiver would discharge there, but no such bulk trade appears in either country's figures.

Who uses gypsum in Djibouti?

Cement grinding is the bulk use: clinker is ground with gypsum to make cement, and Saudi Arabia declared 98,884 t of clinker to Djibouti in 2025. Djibouti's cement capacity is listed at 365,000 t a year in two integrated plants. Plaster and board users buy smaller bagged lots.

What lot size is workable to Djibouti?

The 2023 Omani lots were about 24,400 t each, a geared Handysize or Handymax cargo. Smaller quantities move as part cargoes at a higher freight per tonne. The discharge terminal, its rate and the receiver's storage are settled before the ship is sized.

East Africa · Djibouti

Gypsum and Limestone CFR Djibouti

A small, irregular bulk trade: two Omani cargoes in 2023, bagged lots since, and a clinker import that needs gypsum to grind

The record on this lane is thin, and it is stated as it stands. Djibouti's own customs filings to UN Comtrade show 2,299 t of HS 2520 (gypsum, anhydrite and plasters) imported in 2023, 1,714 t in 2022 and 2,326 t in 2021, most of it from the UAE at about USD 416/t in 2023, a price that marks bagged plaster rather than rock, and 440 t of HS 2521 limestone in 2023. Bulk rock appears only in the exporters' declarations: in 2023 Oman declared 24,452 t of gypsum to Djibouti at USD 13/t FOB and 24,400 t of limestone at USD 10/t, neither of which appears in Djibouti's own 2023 import figures. Nothing comparable followed: exporters declared 565 t of HS 2520 and 434 t of HS 2521 to Djibouti in 2025, and Oman, which shipped 14.32 Mt of gypsum and 9.17 Mt of limestone abroad that year, declared none to Djibouti or Ethiopia. Ethiopia, which Djibouti serves as its sea gateway, reported only 115 t of gypsum and 55 t of limestone imports in 2023, so its cement plants are not on this record as buyers of seaborne rock. The one current sign of grinding demand is clinker: Saudi Arabia declared 98,884 t of cement clinker to Djibouti in 2025 at USD 37/t, and clinker is ground with gypsum to make cement. Djibouti's cement capacity is listed at 365,000 t a year in two integrated plants.

CBIL is a commodity brokerage company and brokers natural gypsum rock and limestone CFR Djibouti, in geared Handysize or Supramax lots or as part cargoes, against the quarry's analysis (CaSO4·2H2O or SO3, CaCO3, moisture and size) certified at load. Bulk cargo can discharge at Doraleh Multipurpose Port, which has 15.3 m alongside on a 1,200 m quay and a rail link to the 759 km electrified line to Addis Ababa, in commercial service since January 2018, or at the bulk terminal of the old port. Because the rock is worth less a tonne than the voyage, a landed price is a freight question first: the quantity, the discharge rate and the receiver's storage decide whether a full cargo or a part cargo is workable. Send the mineral and specification, the quantity and how often, the end use, the discharge terminal, the importer of record, the delivery month and the payment terms, and the enquiry is screened and worked against them.

Also on this lane: Limestone

Need the ship as well? Our chartering desk prices bulk limestone and gypsum freight on LaycanDesk.

The market in figures

Djibouti's declared imports, HS 2520: 2023 2,299 t (UAE 1,508 t at ~USD 416/t) · 2022 1,714 t · 2021 2,326 t
Djibouti's declared imports, HS 2521 limestone: 2023 440 t · 2022 292 t · 2021 312 t
Last bulk lots declared by an exporter: Oman 2023: gypsum 24,452 t at USD 13/t FOB · limestone 24,400 t at USD 10/t FOB
Exporters' declarations to Djibouti, 2025: HS 2520 565 t · HS 2521 434 t · Oman none (of 14.32 Mt gypsum and 9.17 Mt limestone exported)
Clinker to Djibouti, 2025: Saudi Arabia 98,884 t at USD 37/t · cement capacity 365,000 t/yr, two integrated plants
Ethiopia's declared imports, 2023: Gypsum (HS 2520) 115 t · limestone (HS 2521) 55 t
Discharge: Doraleh Multipurpose Port: 15.3 m, 1,200 m quay, rail to Addis Ababa (759 km) · old-port bulk terminal

Landed values are the importing country's declared CIF, not CBIL prices.

Questions buyers ask

How much gypsum and limestone does Djibouti import?: Little, on the declared record. Djibouti's own filings show 1,714 to 2,326 t a year of HS 2520 in 2021-2023, mostly bagged plaster at several hundred dollars a tonne, and 292 to 440 t of limestone. The bulk lots on record are Oman's 2023 shipments of 24,452 t of gypsum and 24,400 t of limestone; in 2025 exporters declared only 565 t and 434 t. A new buyer is therefore setting up a lane rather than joining a regular one.
Does Ethiopia import gypsum or limestone through Djibouti?: Not on the declared record: Ethiopia reported 115 t of gypsum and 55 t of limestone imports in 2023 and has filed no data since. Djibouti is Ethiopia's sea gateway, linked by the 759 km railway from Doraleh, so a cargo for an Ethiopian receiver would discharge there, but no such bulk trade appears in either country's figures.
Who uses gypsum in Djibouti?: Cement grinding is the bulk use: clinker is ground with gypsum to make cement, and Saudi Arabia declared 98,884 t of clinker to Djibouti in 2025. Djibouti's cement capacity is listed at 365,000 t a year in two integrated plants. Plaster and board users buy smaller bagged lots.
What lot size is workable to Djibouti?: The 2023 Omani lots were about 24,400 t each, a geared Handysize or Handymax cargo. Smaller quantities move as part cargoes at a higher freight per tonne. The discharge terminal, its rate and the receiver's storage are settled before the ship is sized.