According to an Argus Media report, Kuwait state-owned sulfur producer KPC has rolled over its Kuwait Sulfur Price at US$520/t fob Kuwait. This follows announcements from Qatar's state-controlled QatarEnergy and Abu Dhabi state-owned Adnoc that they are also rolling over their March prices.
Middle East sulfur exports are largely stranded because of the effective closure of the strait of Hormuz, as a result of the US-Israel war with Iran.
The strait of Hormuz is the main export route for Mideast Gulf crude oil, gas and sulphur shipments. Vessel traffic through the waterway has almost come to a standstill since the US and Israel began launching air strikes on Iran on 28 February. Tehran has responded by attacking other countries in the region, including targeting oil and gas infrastructure and shipping.
A Chinese-owned Handymax bulk carrier safely transited the strait of Hormuz over the weekend, moving east to dock at Fujairah in the UAE, ship-tracking data. It is the second such case in recent days.
The 53 395 deadweight tonne KSL Hengyang passed through the strait during the night of 6 - 7 March, having loaded sulfur in Jubail, Saudi Arabia. It set sail from Jubail on 3 March, idled in the Gulf for more than a day, resumed its voyage on 5 March, and has now moved to anchorage at Fujairah, data from analytics firm Kpler show.
Sulfur production falls
Sulfur production has fallen as a result of the war in the Middle East, causing the previous softening price trend to reverse since last week.
- KPC has started to reduce its crude output and refinery run rates, after oil exports were effectively halted because of the war, the company said 7 March. KPC has issued a force majeure notice on its crude and refined products exports, it said in a statement on 7 March. Sulfur production is expected to be reduced by at least 2%. Kuwait exported 2.4 million t of sulfur in 2025.
- Qatar has shut down its massive LNG production complex at Ras Laffan after attacks near the facility. QatarEnergy's sulfur production capacity is around 3.8 million tpy, and it exported 3.4 million t in 2025. The majority of the firm's sulfur comes from the Ras Laffan complex, with a small share of production at Mesaieed.
- Iran has launched drone strikes at Saudi Arabia's 102 000 tpy sulfur capacity Ras Tanura refinery, Kuwait's 146 000 tpy Mina al-Ahmadi refinery and Bahrain's 210 000 tpy b/d Sitra refinery. The Ras Tanura facility has been off line since early last week.
Read the original story written by Maria Mosquera on Argus Media.