Producer
ELAB (Egyptian Linear Alkyl Benzene Company)
Egyptian LAB producer established 2003, production began 2008; capacity 100,000 MT/year (design) using UOP Detal catalyst technology. Achieved a record 141,000 MT in 2025, above nameplate capacity. Key producer for Middle East and North Africa detergent markets; exports across the region. Egypt's position as an LAB producer reduces the region's dependence on Spanish (CEPSA) and Asian imports for a commodity critical to household hygiene across one of the world's fastest-growing consumer markets.
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LAB (Linear Alkylbenzene)
80%LABSA & Downstream Surfactants
15%Industrial Chemical Services
5%
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Did you know2021
ELAB's Ain Sokhna facility is positioned directly on the Red Sea approach to the Suez Canal — the same chokepoint that grounded the Ever Given in 2021 for six days, disrupting $9.6 billion/day in global trade. ELAB exports LAB (the detergent feedstock) to both European and Asian markets through Suez Canal-routed shipping. The same geopolitical risk that affects container shipping (canal blockage, Houthi missile disruptions in 2024) directly impairs the detergent surfactant supply chain to European consumer goods manufacturers who source MENA-region LAB — a connection most FMCG supply chain planners do not model when assessing canal disruption scenarios.
BBC News ↗Origin2023
ELAB was established in 2003 as part of Egypt's industrial development push under Hosni Mubarak's government, which was encouraging foreign investment in capital-intensive manufacturing in special industrial zones. The plant was built at the Ain Sokhna industrial zone on the Red Sea coast — deliberately sited near the Suez Canal to enable efficient exports to both Mediterranean/European and Asian markets. ELAB began commercial LAB production in 2008 and has grown to be one of the largest MENA-region LAB producers, serving Egypt's domestic detergent manufacturers and exporting across the Middle East and Africa.
Egyptian Linear Alkyl Benzene Company ↗