Sulfur: Criticality

The odd risk of a by-product of fossil fuels

What this tab covers How exposed economies are to a supply disruption: the EU, US and India listings, the concentration score, and a quantified exposure for the US, EU, India, China, Japan, Latin America, the Middle East and Australia. Where the EU scored it, a chart of supply risk against economic importance, with import reliance, recycling input and substitutes.

Exposure by region

Region	Exposure	Share of world output	Share of world imports	Share of world exports	Net trade (US$)	On own critical list	Position
US	Low	9.9%	2.1%	10.1%	+$71.3 m	No	Produced 8.1 Mt in 2025 and imported 14% of its needs, mostly from Canada (53%); the Tampa contract hit a record $705/long t in Q3 2026 (USGS; Argus).
EU	Medium	5.7%	4.4%	11.1%	−$42.5 m	No	Not on the EU critical list (supply risk 0.3) and self-sufficient on EU data, though economic importance is high at 5.0 (EU CRM 2023); Poland produced 1.1 Mt in 2025 (USGS).
India	Medium	4.7%	4.2%	4.2%	−$167.6 m	No	Produced 3.7 Mt (2025, USGS) but imported 2.25 Mt, 84% from the Middle East, and informally halted exports in 2026 as prices doubled to about $1,050-1,100/t (Argus; Indian Express).
China	Medium	22.5%	19.6%	0.0%	−$1.16 bn	No	Largest producer (19 Mt, including smelter acid and pyrite) and largest importer at 9.6 Mt in 2025, about half from the Middle East (USGS; Argus).
Japan	Low	3.3%	0.0%	3.2%	+$61.0 m	No	Produced 2.7 Mt in 2025, mostly at refineries and smelters, and is a net exporter (USGS).
Latin America	Medium	3.9%	7.3%	0.4%	−$419.2 m	no list	Brazil imports for fertilisers (5.4% of world import value, 2024) and Chile (1.4 Mt output, 2025) makes smelter acid for copper leaching (USGS; Comtrade).
Middle East	Low	24.1%	1.8%	19.2%	+$265.0 m	no list	Saudi Arabia (7.2 Mt), UAE (6.3 Mt), Qatar (3.1 Mt), Iran (2.1 Mt) and Kuwait (1.3 Mt) are the export hub; over 45% of world supply was stranded when Hormuz closed in 2026 (USGS; Argus).
Australia	Medium	1.1%	1.1%	0.0%	−$62.7 m	No	Produced 0.9 Mt in 2025 (USGS) and imports sulfur and acid for nickel, copper and phosphate processing.

Exposure rating: High when the region is a net importer whose import share is at least three times its share of world output (or, for farm goods, it produces under 70% of what it consumes); Medium for other net importers (or 70-95% self-sufficiency), raised to High when world supply is highly concentrated in another country; Low for net exporters or self-sufficient regions. Net importer status uses tonnage where reported, otherwise value. Output: World Mining Data, 2024. Trade: UN Comtrade 2024 (EU = sum of member states, including intra-EU trade). Critical lists: US 2025, EU 2024/1252, India 2023, China 2016 strategic minerals, Japan METI, Australia 2024.

Sulfur is not critical for the EU, with supply risk 0.3 but high economic importance at 5.0. It is not on the US 2025 or India 2023 lists. Its risk is unusual: supply depends on fossil-fuel processing, so a decline in oil refining could shrink it just as battery-metal leaching grows. USGS says no substitute is satisfactory at current prices. Other acids can replace sulfuric acid in some uses, usually at higher cost. Food security is exposed through phosphate fertiliser.

EU 2023 Not critical US 2025 list No India 2023 list No Production HHI 935 unconcentrated

EU 2023 assessment

Chart: EU 2023 criticality: supply risk against economic importance

Each dot is a material assessed by the EU in 2023. The shaded corner is the critical zone (supply risk ≥ 1.0, economic importance ≥ 2.8). Sulfur: supply risk 0.3, economic importance 5. EU import reliance, processing 0% EU recycling input rate 0% US net import reliance, 2025 14% share of apparent consumption

Substitutes

No satisfactory substitutes at present prices; some acids can replace sulfuric acid in certain uses, usually at higher cost