Magazine: Sulphur

In spite of changing patterns of demand, deglobalisation and environmental concerns, phosphate mining and acid-based processing are likely to be the mainstay of the industry for years to come.

PT Petrokimia Gresik detail an inventive redesign of their economiser, a critical component in sulphuric acid production, focusing on energy efficiency, decarbonisation, process optimisation, and equipment durability.

Following the completion of expansion work on the ultra-sour gas Shah field in May 2023, production has been ramped up. Occidental, which owns 40% of the Shah project and which operates the field in conjunction with ADONC Sour Gas, reported in July that it had achieved record output at Shah, with gross gas sales reaching 722 million scfd in Q2 2023 (equivalent to 1.1 billion scf/d of raw gas, which is 23% H2S and 10% CO 2 ). The expansion has taken processing capacity at Shah to 1.45 billion scf/d and forms part of the UAE’s plans to achieve gas self-sufficiency by the end of the decade. The expansion was conducted by Saipem, who were awarded a $510 million contract in 2021 to expand output from 1.3 billion scf/d to the current 1.45 billion scf/d. Work was completed two months ahead of schedule, according to Occidental.

New supply is weighing on the market. In addition to increased exports in the second half of the year from upgrades and new refining projects from the Middle East, crushed lump sulphur is also again entering the market in higher quantities from both the FSU and the Middle East, and displacing granular product in some markets, notably Morocco and China.

Maria Mosquera, Editor of the Argus Sulphur Report and Liliana Minton, Editor of the Argus Sulphuric Acid Report at Argus Media assess price trends and the market outlook for sulphur and sulphuric acid.

Lithium ion battery production is driving major expansions in nickel and cobalt extraction, but lithium iron phosphate (LFP) battery use is growing rapidly.

Occidental Petroleum has appointed Sunil Mathew as its new chief financial officer for the next three years. He succeeds Robert Peterson , who served as Senior Vice President and CFO. As EVP, Peterson will now oversee the company’s chemical segment. Mathew joined Occidental in 2004 and has been Vice President of Strategic Planning and Analysis since 2014, in which role he was instrumental in the company’s large-scale divestiture effort of around $10 billion following the Anadarko acquisition. He has also worked for Schlumberger in the Middle East and Asia. Peterson, who has been CFO since 2020, will become executive vice president of essential chemistry at Occidental Chemical Corporation (Oxy-Chem), a wholly-owned subsidiary.

With the aid of a rigorous kinetic model for TGU hydrogenation reactors, incorporating catalyst deactivation mechanisms, designers and operators can forecast the life expectancy of reactor catalyst beds.

All is not well with the Chinese economy. Growth has slowed to a fraction of what it was, only 0.8% in 2Q 2023, and has not bounced back as expected as covid lockdowns were eased. Exports and imports are both falling, debt has reached 300% of GDP, youth unemployment is running at 20%, and the property market is collapsing, with huge property developers like Evergrande and Country Garden only avoiding bankruptcy via government arranged loan restructurings. Consumer prices have fallen year on year, raising the spectre of deflation, and productivity growth has fallen from 4.5% year on year in 2006-7 to around 0.8% today. The yuan is trading at a 16-year low against the dollar.

As producers and regulators become increasingly concerned about the ‘circular economy’, there is increasing focus on regenerating waste sulphuric acid for re-use.