FOB Chennai: How a Spice Export Shipment Actually Moves

Shipments quoted "FOB Chennai" load from either Chennai Port or Kamarajar Port (Ennore), depending on the shipping line's rotation for that destination — both serve the Chennai region and both are common for spice exports. Confirm the actual load port on your booking rather than assuming from the Incoterm name alone, since freight and transit time can differ between the two.

• Incoterm and port confirmed at quotation — FOB, with the load port named specifically.
• Buyer nominates the carrier and shipping line, since freight from the load port onward is the buyer's arrangement under FOB.
• Booking is confirmed with the nominated line and a container is allotted against it.
• The container is stuffed — either at the exporter's factory ("factory stuffing") or at a Container Freight Station (CFS) near the port, depending on cargo volume and the exporter's setup.
• The shipping bill is filed electronically through ICEGATE, India's customs platform, ahead of the vessel's cutoff date.
• The container gates in at the port; customs may select it for physical or documentary examination before releasing it.
• Once cleared, a Let Export Order (LEO) is issued — the formal customs clearance to load the cargo.
• The container is loaded onboard and the Bill of Lading is issued, marking the point where FOB risk and cost pass to the buyer.

Under Incoterms 2020, FOB risk transfers once the goods are loaded on board the vessel at the named port — not at the factory gate and not at the port entrance. Everything before that point (stuffing, inland transport, port handling, customs filing) is the exporter's arrangement and cost; everything from vessel loading onward — ocean freight, marine insurance, destination charges — is the buyer's. Our incoterms for spice importers guide covers how FOB compares to CFR and CIF if you're deciding which term suits your shipment.

The two most common delay points are a missed vessel cutoff — which can trigger demurrage and detention charges if the container sits past its free days — and a customs examination hold, which is selected by risk criteria rather than something either party controls. Booking early relative to the sailing date, and keeping the shipping bill and underlying documents consistent with the physical cargo, are the two most practical ways to avoid both. See our export documentation checklist and bill of lading terms guide for the paperwork side of this.