A senior company executive stated that petrochemical company Sasol has received certification from a German agency for its sustainable aviation fuel (SAF), paving the way for exports to the European Union.
A drone view displays the Sasol petrochemical refinery in Sasolburg, southwest of Johannesburg. Image credit: Reuters/Thando Hlophe/File Photo
Sasol’s SAF, produced from cooking oil and veobtainable oil at the company’s 108,500 barrels per day Natref plant, was granted ISCC Plus sustainability certification by Germany’s TUV SUD.
The agency also certified sustainable chemicals produced at Sasol’s sister Secunda complex, Sasol stated.
“South Africa has a lot of utilized cooking oil which is being collected, taken to Durban and exported to Rotterdam in the EU, and they build it (SAF) there,” Sarushen Pillay, Sasol’s VP strategy and technology, informed Reuters.
“Now, we will be able to build it in South Africa.”
He did not declare when Sasol hoped to start exports to the EU.
The US-Israeli war with Iran has severely crimped jet fuel supplies globally, with the EU among the worst hit regions as skyrocketing prices and dwindling stocks hit airlines ahead of a potentially catastrophic summer tourism season.
Depfinishing on customer demand, crude oil-depfinishent Natref, which is converting to a hybrid bio-refinery, is tarobtaining one to two million litres this year, around 16 million in 2027, and up to 100 million litres by 2030, as Sasol aims to reduce its carbon footprint and readies for new, cleaner fuel specifications.
“If we include Secunda, then we are viewing at 200 million litres of SAF by 2030,” Pillay stated.
Sasol, one of Africa’s worst industrial polluters, has also partnered with Anglo American and De Beers to utilize plants such as Solaris crops, which have high oil yield, to develop a biolipid feedstock for its overall SAF production portfolio.
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