LaycanDeskSulphur freight for the Copperbelt - Duqm, Yanbu, Vancouver and the US Gulf to Dar es Salaam and Richards Bay
Formed sulphur for the acid plants of the DR Congo and Zambian copper and cobalt mines, discharged at Dar es Salaam or Richards Bay and trucked inland, on Handysize to Ultramax tonnage. The DR Congo took 84 percent of its 2024 sulphur imports from inside the Gulf (UN Comtrade), and the Strait of Hormuz has been severely restricted since 28 February 2026: about 124,000 tonnes a month to replace for the Copperbelt's acid plants. The desk works the lane on the open load ports, the berth and queue at Dar es Salaam, and the Richards Bay alternative.
The copper and cobalt mines of Katanga and the Zambian Copperbelt burn about 2 million tonnes of sulphur a year to make some 6 million tonnes of leaching acid, and almost all of it arrives by sea and then by truck. The DR Congo declared 1.77 million tonnes of sulphur imports in 2024, of which the UAE, Qatar, Kuwait, Saudi Arabia and Bahrain supplied 84 percent, and Zambia a further 359,600 tonnes (UN Comtrade). Most of it lands at Dar es Salaam, is sold FCA from the port warehouses and goes up the Dar corridor to Kolwezi and the Copperbelt: four ships discharged 181,000 tonnes there in February 2026 alone. With Gulf loadings restricted, the price FCA Dar es Salaam went from USD 405 to 410 a tonne in October 2025 to USD 615 to 630 on 3 March 2026 and past USD 1,000 by 10 April. The replacement tonnes come from outside the strait: a 30,000 tonne cargo from Duqm reached Dar es Salaam on 31 March 2026, the Saudi Red Sea ports of Yanbu, Rabigh and Jizan load outside the strait with each lifting confirmed per cargo, and the miners have secured sulphur from Vancouver and the US Gulf.
Dar es Salaam has 12 berths: berths 0 to 7 work 14.5 metres of draft and berths 8 to 11 work 13.5 metres, with a maximum length of 305 metres, so a laden Supramax or Ultramax berths in full and the constraint is the queue and the trucks rather than the water. The port was closed from 30 October to 5 November 2025 and bulk ships backed up, and trucking from Dar es Salaam to Kolwezi cost about USD 280 a tonne in early March 2026. Richards Bay is the second gateway: its dry bulk berths allow 14 to 17.5 metres of draught, and a sulphur terminal there with capacity for 200,000 tonnes a month discharges, bags and loads to rail and road, though trucking from Richards Bay to Kolwezi ran at about USD 600 a tonne in 2026. Formed sulphur is an IMSBC Group C cargo that is corrosive when wet, so holds are cleaned and lime-washed and the cargo kept dry. Charterers send the producer and load terminal, quantity and tolerance, the discharge port and berth, rates and laytime terms, laycan, commission and the charterer's name.
Load ports
- Duqm (30,000 t cargo delivered to Dar es Salaam on 31 March 2026)
- Yanbu, Rabigh and Jizan on the Saudi Red Sea (lifting confirmed per cargo)
- Vancouver and the US Gulf, formed sulphur
- All outside the Strait of Hormuz
Discharge ports
- Dar es Salaam: berths 0–7 at 14.5 m, berths 8–11 at 13.5 m, LOA to 305 m
- Dar es Salaam: 181,000 t discharged by four ships in February 2026; sold FCA port warehouse and trucked
- Richards Bay dry bulk berths: 14.0–17.5 m permissible draught
- Richards Bay sulphur terminal: 200,000 t a month, bagging, rail and road loading
Typical parcels
- Handysize and Handymax 30,000–35,000 t
- Supramax and Ultramax 45,000–55,000 t
- DR Congo 2024: 1.77 Mt imported, 84% from inside the Gulf; Zambia 359,600 t (UN Comtrade)
- IMSBC Group C for formed sulphur; holds cleaned and lime-washed
Ships that carry it
The cargo itself, on Commbril
The cargo from the freight side
Questions charterers and owners ask
Dar es Salaam or Richards Bay for Copperbelt sulphur?
Dar es Salaam carries most of it: the sulphur is sold FCA from the port warehouses and trucked to Kolwezi, at about USD 280 a tonne in early March 2026. Richards Bay has deeper berths and a sulphur terminal that bags and loads to rail and road, but trucking from there to Kolwezi ran at about USD 600 a tonne in 2026. The receiver's inland contract decides, and the port goes in the stem.
What draft can I use at Dar es Salaam?
Berths 0 to 7 work 14.5 metres and berths 8 to 11 work 13.5 metres, with a maximum length of 305 metres. A laden Supramax draws about 12.5 to 13 metres, so the ship arrives in full. The time is lost at the anchorage and in the warehouse, so the discharge rate and the laytime terms matter more than the water.
Where does the sulphur load now?
Outside the Strait of Hormuz: Duqm in Oman, Vancouver and the US Gulf, and the Saudi Red Sea ports of Yanbu, Rabigh and Jizan subject to confirmation of loading. A 30,000 tonne cargo from Duqm reached Dar es Salaam on 31 March 2026. Tell us the producer and the load terminal and the stem goes to owners with the routing.
What must I send to get a named ship?
Producer and load terminal, the form of the sulphur, quantity and tolerance, discharge port and berth, load and discharge rates with laytime terms, laycan, commission and the charterer's name. Handysize to Ultramax owners opening in the Arabian Sea, the Red Sea, East Africa or South Africa send name, IMO number, dwt, draft, gear, open port and dates to desk-a005f1@in.laycandesk.com.