The Middle East’s role as a leading producer of sulphur globally will be highlighted at the Middle East Sulphur 2017, to be held next month, in Abu Dhabi, UAE.

The event will take place from February 12 to 16, Jumeriah at Eithad Towers.

Often viewed as a by-product of the oil and gas industries, sulphur is now coming to the fore as its versatility and potential is realised by business leaders around the world, said a statement from the organisers.

Sulphur is also the primary source in producing sulphuric acid, the world’s most used chemical – which is used in a multitude of applications from fertilizer production through to steel, wind turbines and electronics, it said.

The widening use and recognition of sulphur is of significant importance to the UAE, which at an output of around 18,000 tonnes a day, is one of the biggest sulphur producers in the world, it added.

This figure may increase in the coming years as Abu Dhabi National Oil Company’s (Adnoc) current production sites in Shah and Habshan could be joined by a number of gas fields that are yet to be utilised for sulphur extraction.   

With the nation’s impending targets for economic diversification, sulphur’s alternative uses puts it high up on the agenda of prosperous paths that UAE businesses could take.  Adnoc, Platinum Sponsor for CRU’s Middle East Sulphur, is a high profile example of this, with recent comments pointing to upcoming investments in fertilizers which will help secure long term consumption of their sulphur.

Omar Suwaina Al Suwaidi, gas management director at Adnoc, will be opening the conference and addressing the topic of Adnoc’s future strategic plans as the company continues to evolve into an agile, resilient and commercially driven company.

The sulphur industry has seen a change of fortunes in recent years, reversing the perception that sulphur was simply a cost of production in oil and gas processing. However, as the market becomes more competitive across the globe, the Middle East can lead by example in providing a long term, sustainable business framework.

Dr Peter Harrisson, senior consultant and sulphur team Leader, CRU, said: “Sulphur demand in traditional sectors has grown significantly over recent years. In the future these uses will grow further but new sulphur demand, such as use as a fertilizer nutrient in its own right, will also add to global consumption.”

“Supply growth in the Middle East will make the region one of the most influential origins for the global sulphur market. As the sulphur market moved into surplus in 2016, the existence of efficient and flexible logistics infrastructure to move sulphur to market is more important than ever,” he said.

“The UAE has succeeded in developing this infrastructure to mean that sulphur will offer a real opportunity to add value whether the global market is in surplus or deficit over the coming years,” he added.

CRU, a business intelligence provider, also hosts the annual Sulphur International Conference and Exhibition - the premier industry event for the sulphur and sulphuric acid market for over 30 years, which takes place in November each year: The next edition of the conference will take place in Atlanta, US, later this year in November, it stated. – TradeArabia News Service