Page 4 - AfrOil Week 39 2021

AfrOil COMMENTARY AfrOil

(Photo: Sasol)
Sasol’s new direction

South Africa’s second-largest GHG emitter will replace coal

with gas as part of its move toward a lower-carbon future

SOUTH African energy and chemicals com- have committed to.
pany Sasol announced ambitious emissions-re- “Based on detailed assessments and model-
WHAT: duction targets on September 22 and will not ling, our 2030 target can be delivered without
Sasol will stop investing be investing in new coal projects. Instead, it is divestments and offsets, but through the direct
in coal and make gas changing direction to a new sustainable solu- decarbonisation of our existing assets,” said
the initial focus of its tions business, in a break from its original busi- Fleetwood Grobler, president and CEO of Sasol.
transition programme. ness model. Sasol is the country’s second-biggest “This will be done through a mix of energy and
emitter, after electricity utility Eskom. It plans to process efficiencies, investments in renewa-
WHY: replace coal feedstock with gas, according to its bles and a shift to incremental natural gas as a
The shift is in line with new vision for a decarbonised future. transition feedstock for our Southern African
the company’s aim to In a statement, Sasol declared that its updated value chain. These solutions are well known and
reduce net CO2 emissions strategy commits it to be at net-zero emissions mostly under our control, and the investments
to zero by 2050.
by 2050. This, the statement said, is in line with required are cost-effective, preserving strong
the company’s commitment to accelerate its returns in our business, above the cost of capital.”
WHAT NEXT: transition to a low-carbon world in support of
Sasol is planning to use
its own funding to cover the objectives of the Paris Agreement. Shifting fuel mix
the costs of the transition. In alignment with its 2050 ambition, Sasol Beyond 2030, Sasol has more than one via-
has stepped up its 2030 scope 1 and 2 green- ble pathway to reach its net-zero goal by 2050,
house gas (GHG) emissions reduction target, with different options to transform its Southern
from the initial 10% from a 2017 baseline for its Africa value chain by progressively shifting its
South African operations announced last year to feedstock away from coal. Initially, it will move
30% for its energy and chemicals businesses. The towards more gas as a transition fuel, and then in
company is also introducing a scope 3 reduction the longer term, it will focus on green hydrogen
target, for its energy business, based on a 2019 and sustainable carbon as economics improve
baseline. This is consistent with what its peers for these options.

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