FOB Novorossiysk grain export — the core load term
FOB Novorossiysk means you arrange ocean freight. MOSTAGRO delivers wheat, barley or corn over the ship’s rail at the named Black Sea load port. Sister ports Tuapse and Taman. NOR, laycan and demurrage coordinated with the carrier.
- Buyer nominates the vessel · seller loads the grain
- Novorossiysk · Tuapse · Taman · Azov · Rostov-on-Don
- Bulk 3,000–60,000 MT · bags from 500 MT
FOB Novorossiysk · at a glance
Indicative 12.5% wheat price matches the product page.
| Incoterm | FOB named Black Sea load port |
|---|---|
| Core load port | Novorossiysk |
| Sister ports | Tuapse · Taman |
| Azov basin | Azov · Rostov-on-Don (draft-limited) |
| Indicative FOB | USD 165 / MT · 12.5% milling wheat (indicative) |
| Lot size | Bulk 3,000–60,000 MT · bags from 500 MT |
What FOB means for the buyer
FOB — Free On Board — is the core load term in Black Sea grain. The seller’s job ends when the goods pass the ship’s rail at the named load port. From that moment the buyer carries risk, ocean freight and insurance. Practically: you (or your charterer) nominate a suitable vessel, fix the voyage, and tell us the laycan. We put milling wheat, feed barley or corn into that vessel at Novorossiysk unless the stem is better at a sister port. We do not book the ocean ticket. That is why traders, GASC freight desks and mills with their own liner agency prefer FOB: they already own the ship economics. Mills that do not want to charter should open CIF Mersin (Turkey) or the CIF options on GASC Egypt instead.
What FOB does not include is as important as what it does. Discharge at Mersin, Damietta, Bandar Abbas or anywhere else is not in the FOB price. Neither is import clearance nor trucking to a mill. Those costs sit on the CIF or DAP contract if you ask us to take them. On FOB they sit with you. Documents still travel: bill of lading, phytosanitary certificate, certificate of origin, SGS inspection. Settlement is still digital-asset escrow released against those documents. The Incoterm only changes who pays the sea freight — not whether the grain is inspected or how funds are locked.
- Buyer nominates vessel and pays ocean freight + insurance
- Seller delivers over the rail at the named load port
- SGS, phytosanitary, CoO and B/L still travel with the lot
- Want freight included? Switch to CIF Mersin or CIF Egypt
Novorossiysk, Tuapse, Taman — Azov when draft fits
Novorossiysk is the named core because it is the deep-water Black Sea load that most FOB stems actually use. It is not the only berth. Tuapse and Taman are sister Black Sea ports on the same commercial map: same grain, same GOST specs, same SGS mechanic, a different quay when congestion, vessel size or elevator stem makes Novorossiysk the wrong answer for that week. The contract names the port. After the stem is fixed we do not treat the three as freely interchangeable. If your charter party already says Taman, say so on the enquiry.
Azov and Rostov-on-Don sit on the Azov basin. They suit smaller lots and shallower draft. They are not a substitute for a Panamax Novorossiysk stem. Use them when the volume and the vessel match the basin; do not use them to “save freight” on a 60,000 MT cargo. Vessel class on FOB follows the buyer’s nomination: Handysize through Panamax, and larger when the terminal and the grain programme allow it. Packing is independent of the quay: bulk in hold for the 3,000–60,000 MT range, or 50 kg / 1 MT big-bags from 500 MT when the receiver cannot take loose grain.
- Core: Novorossiysk deep-water Black Sea load
- Sisters: Tuapse and Taman — named on the stem
- Azov / Rostov-on-Don: smaller lots, draft-limited
- Full vessel and packing notes on logistics
Coordinating the ship you nominated
On FOB the buyer brings the vessel. MOSTAGRO still has to make grain and ship meet. The homepage logistics section already states that we coordinate demurrage, laycan and NOR with the carrier. This route page is where that sentence becomes operational. Laycan is the window in which the nominated vessel is expected to tender notice of readiness at Novorossiysk (or the named sister port). NOR is that notice. Demurrage is what happens if the load takes longer than the allowed laytime. We work those three with the carrier so the elevator stem, the inspector and the vessel are on the same calendar. We do not charter the ship for you on FOB. We do not leave you to discover a clash between silo loading hours and a NOR that arrived on a weekend.
Put the intended laycan on the enquiry. If the mill or GASC desk already has a discharge window at the far end, that still matters on FOB — it constrains when the vessel can sail — but the load-port NOR is the notice we coordinate. SGS samples against the contract spec before or during loading. For milling wheat that spec is GOST 9353-2016, typically 12.5% protein, wet gluten 23–32%, falling number ≥250 s, moisture ≤13.5%, as on milling wheat. Indicative FOB Novorossiysk for that 12.5% grade is USD 165 / MT, the same figure already published on the product page, with the same caveat: it is indicative, not a firm offer, and it is not a CIF number. CIF to a named discharge is always case-by-case.
Escrow locks at contract signing and releases against B/L,
phytosanitary, CoO and SGS. Send grain, protein, volume,
packing, named load port and laycan to
or
+972 55-507-1227. Quote
within 24 hours. If you decide you do not want to nominate a
vessel after all, the commercial switch is
CIF Mersin milling wheat 12.5%
for Turkish mills, or CIF Damietta / Alexandria on the
GASC route. Shared
packing, vessel classes and documentary lists for every
corridor live on
logistics. This URL is the FOB
landing: one load term, named Black Sea ports, buyer’s
freight.
FOB Novorossiysk — questions
What does FOB Novorossiysk mean for the buyer?
The buyer nominates the vessel and arranges ocean freight and insurance. MOSTAGRO delivers the grain over the ship’s rail at Novorossiysk (or a sister load port). Discharge, import clearance and inland haulage are the buyer’s account after the sea voyage.
Which sister ports can load if Novorossiysk is not the stem?
Tuapse and Taman on the Black Sea are the usual sister ports. Azov and Rostov-on-Don are used when draft and lot size fit the Azov basin. The contract names the load port; we do not treat them as interchangeable after the stem is fixed.
Do you coordinate NOR, laycan and demurrage?
Yes. MOSTAGRO coordinates demurrage, laycan and NOR with the carrier on FOB stems, as stated on the homepage logistics section. The buyer still charters the vessel; we align the load window and notices so grain and ship meet.
When should we switch from FOB to CIF Mersin?
Switch to CIF Mersin when you want freight and insurance included to a named Turkish port instead of nominating a vessel. CIF is quoted case-by-case. Indicative FOB Novorossiysk for 12.5% milling wheat is USD 165 / MT as published on the milling wheat product page, with the same caveat.
Nominating a vessel at Novorossiysk?
Grade, volume, load port and laycan — quote within 24 hours.