Energy · Profile from Energy Research Companion

Sasol

The Johannesburg-based integrated energy and chemicals company that turns coal and gas into fuels and chemicals with the Fischer-Tropsch process. It runs the world's largest coal-to-liquids complex at Secunda, which is also reported to be the world's largest single-site emitter of CO2. Sasol was founded by the South African state in 1950 to make the country less dependent on imported oil. It grew under apartheid-era sanctions as a tool of strategic autonomy, was privatised and listed in 1979, and later took its technology abroad:

At a glance

Founded: South African Coal, Oil and Gas Corporation (Suid-Afrikaanse Steenkool-, Olie- en Gaskorporasie), incorporated 26 Sep 1950 as a state company under the Industrial Development Corporation (reported)
Headquarters: Sandton, Johannesburg; main operations at Secunda (Mpumalanga) and Sasolburg (Free State); US base in Houston and Lake Charles, Louisiana
Ownership / structure: Public: JSE (SOL) and NYSE ADS (SSL). Large South African holders include the Public Investment Corporation (~15%, reported, verify) and the Industrial Development Corporation (~8%, reported, verify)
Leadership (2026): Simon Baloyi (president and CEO since 1 Apr 2024; announced 17 Nov 2023); Walt Bruns (CFO, verify); Muriel Dube (chair, verify)
Segments: Mining (coal for Secunda); Gas (Mozambique Pande–Temane and PSA, ROMPCO pipeline); Fuels (Secunda synfuels, Natref refinery with TotalEnergies, retail); Chemicals Africa; Chemicals America (Lake Charles); Chemicals Eurasia (Germany, Italy, China) (company, verify current reporting segments)
Scale: Secunda synthetic-fuels output ~7 Mt a year (verify); Secunda liquid-fuels capacity ~150–160 kb/d (reported, verify); Lake Charles ethane cracker ~1.5 Mt/yr of ethylene; Natref ~108 kb/d crude refinery (reported, verify); scope 1+2 emissions ~60+ Mt CO2e a year (company, verify)
Financial (FY to 30 Jun 2026, reported): Adjusted EBITDA ~R61bn (+17%); EBIT ~R25.7bn (+37%); attributable earnings ~R12.1bn; basic EPS ~R18.99 (+79%); impairments ~R16.8bn (Secunda refinery, polyethylene, Mozambique gas); net debt excl. leases ~$3.3bn (from ~$3.7bn); total debt ~$5.7bn; liquidity ~$5bn; no final dividend
Signature moves (incl. failures): Founding and Sasolburg (1950–55); Secunda and apartheid-era sanctions (1974–82); Mozambique gas and ROMPCO (2004); Oryx GTL (2006); Lake Charles FID (2014) and overrun; CEO exits and governance review (2019); the 2020 crisis and asset sales; emissions limits and Secunda decarbonisation (2021–26); the 2025 capital markets day reset

9 strategic moves analysed

Each one gets a full strategy file in the companion: context, the decision, the financing, what happened, and the lesson.

1950
Founding and Sasolburg
Founding and technology bet (first commercial Fischer-Tropsch plant outside wartime Germany)
1980
Secunda and Apartheid Sanctions
Construction of a strategic project in response to sanctions (Sasol 2 and Sasol 3)
2004
Mozambique Gas and ROMPCO
Upstream development, cross-border pipeline and supply contracts
2006
Oryx GTL
Joint venture and technology export (first world-scale gas-to-liquids plant using Sasol's slurry-phase FT process)
2014
Lake Charles FID
Project final investment decision and construction (failure: cost overrun, delay and write-downs)
2019
CEO Exits and Governance Review
Leadership change and governance review (consequence of the Lake Charles overrun)
2020
Crisis and Asset Sales
Restructuring and divestment (asset sales to avoid a rights issue)
2021
Emissions Limits and Secunda Decarbonisation
Regulatory and legal action (minimum emission standards) and strategy pivot (2030 and 2050 targets)
2025
Capital Markets Day Reset
Strategy pivot and capital-allocation reset

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