Driven by the Belt and Road Initiative and the infrastructure construction boom in Africa, shipping Chinese steel to Africa has entered a historic period of opportunity. As the world’s largest steel producer, China, with its robust industrial system and efficient logistics network, has become the most important steel supplier to the African market. Given the large volume and diverse specifications of steel products, bulk carrier transportation has emerged as the dominant mode for shipping Chinese steel to Africa. This article will provide an in-depth analysis of the core logic and practical essentials of transporting steel to Africa via bulk carriers, covering market demand, transportation models, operational processes, and risk management.

I. African Market: Infrastructure Boom Creating a Blue Ocean of Demand for Shipping Chinese Steel to Africa

The African continent is experiencing an unprecedented wave of infrastructure construction. According to authoritative statistics, Africa’s infrastructure investment demand is expected to exceed $1.5 trillion in the next decade. In the transportation sector alone, plans are in place to build 30,000 kilometers of new railways and over 20 ports.

Take the Simandou Iron Ore Project in Guinea as an example; the construction of its supporting railways and docks required a one-time procurement of over 50,000 tons of steel from China, including various products such as rails, sheet piles, and steel structures. Projects of this scale have become the norm in Africa, driving the export volume of shipping Chinese steel to Africa to maintain an annual compound growth rate of over 20% in the past five years.

The severe shortage of local production capacity has created a natural market space for shipping Chinese steel to Africa. Currently, Africa’s steel self-sufficiency rate is less than 40%, and more than 60% of its steel relies on imports. Chinese products have captured half of the African import market share, thanks to their significant cost-performance advantage (prices of steel products of the same specifications are 15% – 20% lower than those from Europe) and rapid response capabilities.

A steel structure enterprise in Qingdao customized prefabricated steel components for an industrial park project in Ethiopia. Through bulk carrier transportation, the delivery time from order placement to the construction site was significantly shortened, giving it a competitive edge over some European and American suppliers that used other transportation methods. This exemplifies one of the core advantages of shipping Chinese steel to Africa.

II. Bulk Carrier Transportation: The Inevitable Choice for Shipping Chinese Steel to Africa to Adapt to African Steel Logistics

In the practice of shipping Chinese steel to Africa, bulk carrier transportation plays a dominant role. The formation of this model stems from a comprehensive consideration of the characteristics of steel products and the African logistics environment:

(A) Superior Capacity for Oversized Cargo

Bulk carriers boast strong loading capabilities, enabling them to flexibly transport extra-long and overweight steel products. When transporting special-sized steel like rails and large steel structures, container transportation has size limitations, while bulk carriers can break through these constraints. Additionally, bulk carriers can mix different specifications and types of steel, improving transportation efficiency and meeting Africa’s diverse steel demands, making them an ideal choice for shipping Chinese steel to Africa.

(B) Cost Advantages under Economies of Scale

For large-volume steel transportation, the weight – or volume-based charging method of bulk carriers results in lower unit costs compared to container transportation. As the transportation volume increases, the economies of scale of bulk carriers become more pronounced, effectively reducing the transportation cost per ton of steel. Moreover, the loading and unloading fees of bulk carriers at destination ports are relatively stable, avoiding additional high costs caused by the special dimensions of steel, which is an important reason why bulk carriers are chosen for shipping Chinese steel to Africa.

(C) Risk-Controllable Transportation Strategy

The complex and changeable inland transportation environment in Africa is a major risk factor in the logistics chain. For instance, during the rainy season, the delay rate of road transportation from Lagos Port to Kano, a northern city in Nigeria, is as high as 35%, and there are uncertainties such as cargo damage and customs inspections along the way. By adopting the port-of-arrival service of bulk carriers, exporters only need to be responsible for the transportation of goods to the port.

Subsequent customs clearance, land transportation, and other links are handled by local professional agents, effectively avoiding the systematic risks of cross-border land transportation and ensuring the overall safety of shipping Chinese steel to Africa.

(D) Policy-Adaptive Operational Logic

Customs policies vary significantly among African countries. Some countries (such as South Africa and Kenya) require importers to have specific qualifications (such as IOR filing) or complex customs clearance documents (such as CTN cargo tracking numbers). Having consignees who are familiar with local regulations take charge of the customs clearance process can avoid delays or fines caused by misunderstandings of policies.

For example, the ANGOLESE SHIPPER’S COUNCIL certificate required by Angola needs to be applied for in advance by local enterprises, which is difficult for Chinese exporters to handle directly. The port-of-arrival service mode of bulk carrier transportation perfectly adapts to the policy environment of shipping Chinese steel to Africa.

III. Standardized Processes: The Full Chain of Operations for Shipping Chinese Steel to Africa from Factory to Destination Port

(A) Preparatory Work: Booking and Document Compliance

1. Logistics Plan Design
   Select bulk carrier companies with advantages on African routes and plan transportation routes reasonably according to the origin and destination of steel products. Some shipping companies offer regular liner services, which can reduce the transportation time from Qingdao Port to East African ports to about 25 – 35 days. For overweight and oversized goods, it is necessary to confirm the loading capacity and transportation requirements of the ships with the shipping company in advance to avoid affecting the transportation plan due to cargo specification issues, laying a preliminary foundation for shipping Chinese steel to Africa.
2. Document System Establishment

• Basic Documents: Commercial invoice (HS code, such as 7210.1100 for galvanized steel sheets, should be indicated), packing list (detailed records of steel specifications, weight, quantity, etc.), and certificate of origin CO (issued by the China Council for the Promotion of International Trade or the commodity inspection bureau)
• Regional Special Documents: CTN numbers commonly required by West African countries (should be shown on the bill of lading), COC certifications of some East African countries (such as PVOC in Kenya), and IOR filing receipts from the South African Customs
  These documents are crucial for the customs clearance of shipping Chinese steel to Africa and must be prepared in advance.

(B) Cargo Handling: Loading and Port Operations

The preparatory work before steel loading is of great importance. For small steel products like rebar, bundling and fixing are required; for large steel plates and steel structures, the stacking positions should be planned reasonably according to the layout of the ship’s deck, and they should be firmly bound with steel wires and chains to prevent cargo displacement and damage due to ship shaking during transportation. At professional steel export ports such as Qingdao Port and Lianyungang Port, the loading efficiency can be significantly improved through advanced lifting equipment and mature operation processes, ensuring the safe and efficient loading of goods in the process of shipping Chinese steel to Africa.

(C) Maritime Transportation Stage: Voyage Control and Destination Port Connection

The maritime transportation cycle varies depending on the destination port: about 25 – 35 days for East African ports (Dar es Salaam, Mombasa), about 40 – 55 days for West African ports (Lagos, Abidjan), and the shortest is about 23 days for the South African route (Durban, Cape Town). During the voyage, the shipping company will monitor the ship’s position and cargo status in real-time and regularly report the voyage information to the shipper and consignee.

After the shipping schedule is confirmed, it is necessary to send the pre-arrival notice to the consignee in a timely manner and provide scanned copies of the packing list and invoice simultaneously, so as to handle the import declaration in advance (such as the CRI commodity inspection number in Nigeria), ensuring the overall controllability of shipping Chinese steel to Africa.

(D) Destination Port Operations: Customs Clearance and Delivery

After the ship arrives at the destination port, the consignee can go through the document exchange formalities with the full set of original bills of lading or telex release bills of lading, and then complete the customs declaration, tax payment, commodity inspection, and other processes in sequence. Take Ethiopia as an example; when transshipping from the Port of Djibouti to Addis Ababa, a transshipment application must be submitted to the local customs 72 hours before unloading; otherwise, high demurrage charges may be incurred.

During the cargo unloading process, it is necessary to supervise the unloading operation to ensure the safe unloading of steel and arrange transportation vehicles in a timely manner to transfer the goods to the designated location, completing the final link of shipping Chinese steel to Africa.

IV. Risk Management: Practical Precautions for the Whole Process of Shipping Chinese Steel to Africa

(A) Document Compliance Risks

1. West African countries implement a “one-voyage-one-code” system for CTN numbers. Applying for them after the goods arrive at the port will result in a fine of 10% of the cargo value.
2. Egypt and Morocco allow for the retroactive issuance of certificates of origin, but transportation documents are required as evidence, which will add an additional 3 – 5 working days to the processing time.
3. The South African Customs requires that the “port of discharge” and “place of delivery” on the bill of lading be strictly consistent. There have been cases of customs clearance delays due to spelling errors.
   These risk points require special attention from practitioners of shipping Chinese steel to Africa to avoid losses caused by document issues.

(B) Transportation Risks

It is recommended to purchase all-risk insurance (covering external risks such as fresh water rain damage and rust), with a premium rate of about 0.3% – 0.5% of the cargo value. Since bulk carriers have a long sailing time at sea, steel products are vulnerable to seawater erosion and moisture. Therefore, anti-rust and moisture-proof measures should be taken. For extra-long and overweight goods, it is necessary to communicate the transportation plan with the shipping company in advance to ensure that the goods are firmly fixed and avoid cargo damage during transportation, ensuring the safety of goods in the process of shipping Chinese steel to Africa.

(C) Cost Control

1. Pay attention to the freight policies of shipping companies. Long-term cooperative enterprises can 争取 more favorable freight rates. At the same time, arrange the goods’ shipping time reasonably to avoid the peak shipping season and reduce transportation costs.
2. Optimize the steel loading plan to improve the ship’s space utilization rate and reduce unnecessary transportation costs.
3. Agree on the demurrage sharing mechanism with the consignee in advance (demurrage charges at African ports are relatively high) to avoid unexpected cost increases.
   Through effective cost control, the economic benefits of shipping Chinese steel to Africa can be enhanced.

V. Model Analysis: Why Bulk Carrier Transportation Becomes the Preferred Choice for Shipping Chinese Steel to Africa?

From the perspective of logistics economics, bulk carrier transportation is the optimal solution based on the characteristics of steel products and the African market:

• Economies of Scale: Bulk carriers are suitable for large-volume steel transportation. The unit logistics cost decreases exponentially with the increase in cargo volume. For steel orders of more than 1,000 tons, the bulk carrier transportation model can save 20% – 25% of transportation costs compared to container transportation. This is the core economic logic for choosing bulk carriers in shipping Chinese steel to Africa.
• Specialized Division of Labor: Give full play to the maritime transportation advantages of Chinese exporters and the customs clearance advantages of local African enterprises, forming an efficient cooperation model of “port handover + localized operation”.
• Risk Isolation: Transfer risks such as policy changes (such as tariff adjustments) and exchange rate fluctuations to the end of the supply chain, significantly reducing the exchange rate risks and operational responsibilities of exporters.

This model has been successfully verified in projects such as the Guinea bauxite project and the Mombasa – Nairobi Standard Gauge Railway in Kenya. Chinese enterprises transported steel to the designated ports on time through bulk carriers, and local infrastructure companies were responsible for subsequent transportation. The project logistics costs were significantly reduced compared to other transportation methods, and the on-time delivery rate was significantly improved, becoming a classic practice of shipping Chinese steel to Africa.

Conclusion: Seizing New Opportunities in China-Africa Logistics and Deepening the Market for Shipping Chinese Steel to Africa

With the continuous increase in China-Africa shipping routes and the release of policy dividends from the RCEP and the African Continental Free Trade Area, shipping Chinese steel to Africa is entering a golden development period. Enterprises need to focus on building three core capabilities:

1. Supply Chain Resilience: Establish a dual-hub layout of northern ports (such as Qingdao Port and Lianyungang Port) and southern ports (such as Shenzhen Port and Ningbo Port) to cope with port operation risks under extreme weather conditions.
2. Digital Capabilities: Use logistics information platforms to realize the full online process of booking, transportation monitoring, document processing, etc., improving logistics operation efficiency and reducing operation time.
3. Localized Services: Establish strategic partnerships with customs clearance agents and transportation enterprises at major African ports, and reserve templates of documents such as CTN and COC in advance to achieve efficient “clearance upon arrival” operations.

Through the precise application of bulk carrier transportation models, strict control of process details, and full preparation of risk response plans, Chinese steel enterprises will surely gain a larger market share in the African infrastructure boom and write a new chapter in shipping Chinese steel to Africa.