Market Intel

Egypt Caustic Soda (NaOH) Market

Egypt caustic soda market 2026: TCI Sanmar, MCI and EPC capacities, 224,000 t of liquid NaOH exported in 2024 to Turkey, Italy and Greece, and salt feedstock.

Egypt's chlor-alkali production landscape

Egypt makes caustic soda (sodium hydroxide, NaOH) by the chlor-alkali process — electrolysis of purified sodium chloride brine, which yields chlorine, hydrogen and caustic soda together. Three producers account for the capacity that can be documented from public sources:

TCI Sanmar Chemicals, Port Said

installed capacity of 275,000 t/y of caustic soda, alongside 400,000 t/y of PVC and 130,000 t/y of calcium chloride (position at 31 March 2024, CARE Ratings, 20 March 2025). The same report describes it as the largest caustic-chlorine and PVC capacity in Egypt and the Middle East.

Misr Chemical Industries (MCI), El Max, Alexandria

membrane-cell plant selling sodium hydroxide solution 48–49.8 %, liquid chlorine, caustic flakes, hydrochloric acid, sodium hypochlorite and ferric chloride. An Egyptian Environmental Affairs Agency case summary records average annual production of about 42,000 t of caustic soda and 18,000 t of liquid chlorine, from roughly 94,500 t/y of salt.

Egyptian Petrochemicals Company (EPC), Alexandria

a 228 t/day caustic-chlorine unit, expandable to 342 t/day, on INEOS BICHLOR bipolar membrane technology, awarded to Nuberg EPC in June 2017; the chlorine feeds EPC's EDC / VCM / PVC chain.

The main domestic outlets are pulp and paper, soaps and detergents, textile processing, water treatment, alumina, petroleum refining and food processing. No public source splits Egyptian demand by end-use, so this page does not put percentages on it.

Market at a glance

Metric	Value	Source / year
TCI Sanmar Chemicals, Port Said	275,000 t/y caustic soda · 400,000 t/y PVC · 130,000 t/y calcium chloride	CARE Ratings, 20 Mar 2025 (capacity at 31 Mar 2024)
Misr Chemical Industries, Alexandria	~42,000 t/y caustic soda, 18,000 t/y liquid chlorine (average annual production), membrane cells	EEAA case summary; MCI
Egyptian Petrochemicals Co., Alexandria	228 t/day caustic-chlorine unit, expandable to 342 t/day	Nuberg EPC, Jun 2017
Liquid caustic exports (HS 2815.12)	390,011 t, US$147.5 M in 2023 · 223,818 t, US$66.8 M in 2024	World Bank WITS / UN Comtrade
Liquid caustic — main buyers 2024	Turkey 95,431 t · Italy 81,847 t · Greece 35,931 t	World Bank WITS / UN Comtrade
Liquid caustic imports (HS 2815.12)	1,320 t in 2023 · 8,207 t in 2024	World Bank WITS / UN Comtrade
Solid caustic (HS 2815.11)	Exports 1,403 t (2023), 1,244 t (2024) · imports 6,704 t (2023), 3,412 t (2024)	World Bank WITS / UN Comtrade
Salt feedstock ratio	About 1.5–1.8 t of salt per tonne of NaOH (stoichiometric minimum 1.46 t NaCl)	Chlor-alkali process norm

Caustic soda grades available

Grade	NaOH %	Common form	Typical use
Liquid Caustic 50%	49.5–50.5%	Bulk tank truck / IBC / ISO tank	Pulp/paper, water treatment, textiles
Liquid Caustic 32%	31.5–32.5%	Bulk tank / IBC	Cold-climate transport, oilfield
Caustic Soda Flakes	98–99%	25 kg PP bags, 1 MT FIBC	Soap, detergent, lab use
Caustic Soda Pearls / Prills	98–99%	25 kg bags	Pharmaceutical, food (with cert), specialty
Caustic Soda Solid (Slab)	99% min	Drums / cases	Long-term storage, niche industrial

Salt feedstock for Egyptian chlor-alkali

After electricity, salt is the main raw material in chlor-alkali production — about 1.5–1.8 t of salt per tonne of NaOH, against a stoichiometric minimum of 1.46 t. Membrane-cell plants need ultra-low calcium + magnesium + sulfate brine to avoid membrane fouling.

Egypt Globe Group supplies chlor-alkali grade sea salt from the North Sinai and Red Sea solar saltworks. The limits that matter to a membrane room — calcium, magnesium, sulphate and insolubles — are set per product rather than as one generic figure, and the supply table below quotes them from each product's own specification: for example NaCl ≥ 99.50 %, Ca ≤ 0.03 %, Mg ≤ 0.02 %, SO₄ ≤ 0.15 % on the chemical grade, and SO₄ ≤ 0.08 % on the low-sulphate chlor-alkali grade.

A low-hardness, low-sulphate feed does not replace secondary brine purification at the plant; it lightens the load on it and lengthens the interval between membrane cleanings.

Supply options from EGG

Product	Grade / spec headline	Standard	MOQ
Premium chlor-alkali low-SO₄ sea salt	NaCl ≥ 99.30 %, SO₄ ≤ 0.08 %, Ca ≤ 0.10 %, Mg ≤ 0.03 %, insolubles ≤ 0.03 %	Membrane-cell spec, REACH	240 MT
Chemical grade pure sea salt	NaCl ≥ 99.50 %, Ca ≤ 0.03 %, Mg ≤ 0.02 %, SO₄ ≤ 0.15 %	ISO 9001, REACH	240 MT
PVC production premium sea salt	NaCl ≥ 99.20 %, SO₄ ≤ 0.15 %	PVC industry spec	240 MT
Chlor-alkali rock salt — membrane grade	NaCl ≥ 99 %, Siwa / Qattara	ISO 9001, SGS	240 MT
Salt brine solution 26° Baumé	Saturated NaCl brine	ISO 9001	240 MT
Caustic soda flakes 98 % · caustic soda 98 % NaOH	Egyptian-origin flakes / liquid	EU REACH, SGS, MSDS	100 MT
Soda ash dense 99.2 % · sodium hypochlorite 12 %	Downstream chlor-alkali products	EU REACH, SGS	100 MT
Membrane-cell NaCl page · chlor-alkali & chemical applications · industrial salt catalogue	—	—	—

Egypt's caustic export and import balance

Egypt is a net exporter of liquid caustic soda — by a wide margin. UN Comtrade data published by the World Bank's WITS shows exports under HS 2815.12 (sodium hydroxide in aqueous solution) of 390,011 t worth US$147.5 million in 2023 and 223,818 t worth US$66.8 million in 2024, against imports of 1,320 t and 8,207 t. The trade is short-sea Mediterranean: in 2024 Turkey took 95,431 t, Italy 81,847 t and Greece 35,931 t, followed by France, the United States and Israel; in 2023 Turkey (186,276 t) and Italy (148,500 t) alone took 86 % of the volume.

Solid caustic runs the other way. Under HS 2815.11 Egypt exported 1,403 t in 2023 and 1,244 t in 2024 — Libya, Sudan and Djibouti are the regular destinations — while importing 6,704 t and 3,412 t, mostly from Kuwait, the UAE, Oman and Russia. Flakes from Egypt are therefore a small, regional trade, not a volume export line.

Tonnages are as reported to Comtrade; customs declarations for caustic lye are not always on a dry (100 % NaOH) basis, so treat the liquid figures as shipped weight. Through Egypt Globe Group, caustic soda flakes 98 % and caustic soda 98 % NaOH are offered from 100 MT, loading Alexandria, Damietta or Ain Sokhna.

QA and reliability

Egypt Globe Group positions itself as your verified, long-term supply-chain ally: incorporated 2014 with an internal Quality Assurance division at its nucleus, ISO 9001:2015 across all divisions, and uncompromising QA verification from extraction to destination port. Every lot is tested at the loading-port laboratory and the Certificate of Analysis or Mill Test Certificate is issued before the Bill of Lading; lots outside specification are rejected at the loading port, never re-graded or renegotiated. Independent inspection by TÜV Austria, SGS, Intertek or Bureau Veritas (all ISO/IEC 17020 + 17025) is available on every shipment, laycans are run with documented NOR / SOF, and the specification is guaranteed at the port of loading under the sales contract — see inspection & quality control, trade documentation and quality & compliance. For chlor-alkali feedstock, sulphate and hardness are trended per evaporator batch and confirmed per lot at the port laboratory — the membrane-cell spec is verified before the salt leaves Egypt, not discovered in the brine circuit. See the membrane-cell spec and supplier selection guide.

How Egypt Globe Group supports the chlor-alkali value chain

We don't produce caustic soda — but we play two roles in the value chain:

Salt feedstock supplier — chlor-alkali grade sea salt from the North Sinai and Red Sea saltworks, NaCl ≥ 99.20–99.50 % by grade, FOB Egyptian ports
Procurement intelligence — connecting international buyers of Egyptian caustic to verified producers, with quote consolidation and shipment coordination

Sources

CARE Ratings, TCI Sanmar Chemicals (S.A.E) press release, 20 March 2025 — careratings.com
Egyptian Environmental Affairs Agency, Egyptian Pollution Abatement Project, case summary Misr for Chemical Industries — eeaa.gov.eg
Misr Chemical Industries, product and plant pages — mci.com.eg
Nuberg EPC, 228 TPD caustic soda-chlorine plant, Egypt, 5 June 2017 — nubergepc.com
World Bank WITS (UN Comtrade), Egypt, HS 281511 and 281512, exports and imports, 2023 and 2024 — wits.worldbank.org

Sourcing caustic soda or its salt feedstock from Egypt?

Two routes. For NaOH itself, the caustic soda flakes 98 % and caustic soda 98 % NaOH pages carry Egyptian-origin product from verified producers, from 100 MT. For membrane-cell plants buying feedstock, the chlor-alkali low-SO₄ sea salt and chemical grade pure sea salt pages in the industrial salt catalogue list the full Ca, Mg and SO₄ limits, from 240 MT.

Verification:

a per-lot Certificate of Analysis is issued by the port laboratory before the Bill of Lading; the membrane-cell NaCl page explains the brine purification requirements.

Next step:

choose the quote route below that matches what you are buying.

Request salt feedstock quote →
Connect with Egyptian NaOH suppliers →

Priced offers

Ready for a quote?

FOB / CIF / CFR pricing from 7 Egyptian ports — turnaround once stock, laycan and freight are confirmed.

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Frequently asked questions

How big is Egypt's caustic soda industry?

The largest producer, TCI Sanmar Chemicals at Port Said, has 275,000 t/y of installed caustic soda capacity (CARE Ratings, March 2025). Misr Chemical Industries in Alexandria averages about 42,000 t/y, and Egyptian Petrochemicals Company runs a 228 t/day caustic-chlorine unit. Egypt exported 390,011 t of liquid caustic in 2023 and 223,818 t in 2024 (UN Comtrade via WITS).

Who are the main caustic soda producers in Egypt?

TCI Sanmar Chemicals in Port Said (275,000 t/y caustic soda, integrated with 400,000 t/y of PVC), Misr Chemical Industries at El Max, Alexandria (membrane cells, about 42,000 t/y) and Egyptian Petrochemicals Company in Alexandria (228 t/day, expandable to 342 t/day).

Does Egypt export or import caustic soda?

Both, by form. Egypt is a large net exporter of liquid caustic (HS 2815.12): 223,818 t in 2024, mainly to Turkey, Italy and Greece, against 8,207 t imported. For solid caustic (HS 2815.11) it is a small net importer: 1,244 t exported and 3,412 t imported in 2024.

Which Egyptian ports ship caustic soda through Egypt Globe Group?

Caustic soda flakes 98 % and caustic soda 98 % NaOH are offered from 100 MT, loading Alexandria, Damietta or Ain Sokhna. A Certificate of Analysis and the safety data sheet are issued before the Bill of Lading.

What salt is used for chlor-alkali caustic soda production?

Membrane-cell plants need low-hardness, low-sulphate salt. Egypt Globe Group's chemical grade sea salt is specified at NaCl ≥ 99.50 %, Ca ≤ 0.03 %, Mg ≤ 0.02 % and SO₄ ≤ 0.15 %; the low-sulphate chlor-alkali grade at NaCl ≥ 99.30 % and SO₄ ≤ 0.08 %. Plants use about 1.5–1.8 t of salt per tonne of NaOH.

Other questions? Email our export desk — the export desk replies to every request.