mineral · input

Elemental Sulfur (from Oil/Gas Processing)

Recovered sulfur from sour crude oil and natural gas processing via the Claus process. Used to manufacture sulfuric acid for phosphate fertilizer production. Alberta's sour gas processing generates ~4 Mt/year of elemental sulfur. Saudi Arabia, Canada, Russia, and Kuwait are major elemental sulfur exporters — primarily to fertilizer-producing countries that lack domestic sulfur sources.

Source countries

Companies

Goods affected

Claims on record

What depends on it

Goods that need this input

1 essential American goods rely on elemental sulfur (from oil/gas processing) somewhere upstream in their supply chain.

Agriculture

Fertilizers and crop inputs

Nitrogen, phosphate, and potash fertilizers for U.S. crop production.

Where it comes from

Source countries

Share of global supply, by country.

Country	Share of supply
SASaudi Arabia	15%
CACanada	14%
RURussia	12%
USUnited States	10%
IRIran	8%

Who makes it

Supplier companies

2 companies produce elemental sulfur (from oil/gas processing).

Tengizchevroil (TCO)

HQ KZ4% share

Joint venture operating the Tengiz and Korolevskoye oilfields in Kazakhstan: Chevron (50%), ExxonMobil (25%), Kazmunaigaz (20%), Lukoil (5%). Tengiz crude oil has up to 17% sulfur content — among the highest of any major oilfield globally. Sulfur accumulation at Tengiz became a major environmental issue: a $71M fine was levied in 2007 for sulfur storage violations. Kazakhstan exported $199M worth of sulfur in Q1 2022 alone (+263% YoY). TCO exports oil (and associated sulfur) via the Caspian Pipeline Consortium (CPC) to Novorossiysk on the Black Sea — a single-pipeline dependency. CPC terminal damaged in March 2022, disrupting Kazakhstan exports. Tengiz fire (January 2026) caused force majeure.

Canadian Natural Resources Ltd. (CNRL)(CNQ)

HQ CA2% share

One of Canada's largest oil and gas producers; major oil sands operator (Horizon Oil Sands upgrader, Athabasca Oil Sands Project). Produces elemental sulfur as mandatory byproduct of bitumen upgrading. CNRL's Horizon upgrader processes high-sulfur bitumen; sulfur is formed into blocks/prills and stockpiled or shipped. Canada's oil sands produce ~3M MT/year marketable sulfur; CNRL, Suncor, and Cenovus are the primary contributors. CNRL also operator of largest oil sands project (Jackfish thermal in-situ SAGD operations).

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