PRODUCTION AND SALES METRICS FOR THE THREE MONTHS ENDED 30 SEPTEMBER 2022; OPERATIONAL UPDATE FOR SOUTH AFRICA AND LAKE CHARLES
Sasol has published its production and sales metrics for the quarter ended 30 September 2022. In South Africa, operations faced disruptions due to a strike by Transnet employees, leading Sasol to declare force majeure on local supply and export of some products. This affected production rates at select plants while the Natref refinery remained operational. At Lake Charles, a fire occurred on 15 October 2022 at the Ziegler alcohol unit, although there were no injuries reported. Further investigations are ongoing to assess damage and repair timelines.
- Natref refinery continued operations unaffected by the strike.
- Swift response to fire incident at Lake Charles with no injuries reported.
- Declared force majeure affecting supply and export of certain products.
- Production rates impacted at selected plants in Secunda and Sasolburg.
- Uncertainty regarding the extent and timing to resolve backlogs due to strikes.
JOHANNESBURG, Oct. 20, 2022 /PRNewswire/ -- Sasol has published its production and sales performance metrics for the 3 months ended 30 September 2022 on the Company´s website at www.sasol.com, under the Investor Centre section: https://www.sasol.com/investor-centre/financial-results
OPERATIONAL UPDATE FOR SOUTH AFRICA AND LAKE CHARLES
SOUTH AFRICA
Employees of South Africa's railway company, Transnet SOC Ltd ("Transnet"), and its affiliates embarked on a wage related strike on 6 October 2022. Sasol subsequently received a notice of force majeure from Transnet, which impacts the movement of certain feedstocks and products between the company's inland operations and the Durban and Richards Bay ports.
As a result, Sasol has declared force majeure on the local supply and export of certain chemical products. Production rates at selected plants in Secunda and Sasolburg have been impacted. The Natref refinery continues to operate as no disruption was caused to Transnet's pipelines.
Negotiations between Transnet and the majority trade union concluded on 17 October 2022. Port and rail activities have commenced, with the discharge of containers from ships in the harbor prioritised. Sasol is unable to quantify the impact on its South African value chains, as the extent and timing to clear the backlogs across the port and rail system remain uncertain.
LAKE CHARLES
On 15 October 2022, a fire occurred at the new Ziegler alcohol unit at the Lake Charles Chemicals Complex. The Sasol on-site emergency response team responded swiftly, and the fire was contained with no injuries reported. The investigation is underway to determine the cause, extent of the damage, and the scope and timeline of repair.
Sasol will continue to monitor the situation closely and provide further updates, as appropriate.
For further information, please contact:
Sasol Investor Relations,
Tiffany Sydow, Investor Relations Officer
Telephone: +27 (0) 71 673 1929
investor.relations@sasol.com
Disclaimer - Forward-looking statements
Sasol may, in this document, make certain statements that are not historical facts and relate to analyses and other information which are based on forecasts of future results and estimates of amounts not yet determinable. These statements may also relate to our future prospects, expectations, developments, and business strategies. Examples of such forward-looking statements include, but are not limited to, the impact of the novel coronavirus (COVID-19) pandemic, and measures taken in response, on Sasol's business, results of operations, markets, employees, financial condition and liquidity; the effectiveness of any actions taken by Sasol to address or limit any impact of COVID-19 on its business; the capital cost of our projects and the timing of project milestones; our ability to obtain financing to meet the funding requirements of our capital investment programme, as well as to fund our ongoing business activities and to pay dividends; statements regarding our future results of operations and financial condition, and regarding future economic performance including cost containment, cash conservation programmes and business optimisation initiatives; recent and proposed accounting pronouncements and their impact on our future results of operations and financial condition; our business strategy, performance outlook, plans, objectives or goals; statements regarding future competition, volume growth and changes in market share in the industries and markets for our products; our existing or anticipated investments, acquisitions of new businesses or the disposal of existing businesses, including estimates or projection of internal rates of return and future profitability; our estimated oil, gas and coal reserves; the probable future outcome of litigation, legislative, regulatory and fiscal developments, including statements regarding our ability to comply with future laws and regulations; future fluctuations in refining margins and crude oil, natural gas and petroleum and chemical product prices; the demand, pricing and cyclicality of oil, gas and petrochemical product prices; changes in the fuel and gas pricing mechanisms in South Africa and their effects on prices, our operating results and profitability; statements regarding future fluctuations in exchange and interest rates and changes in credit ratings; total shareholder return; our current or future products and anticipated customer demand for these products; assumptions relating to macroeconomics; climate change impacts and our climate change strategies, our development of sustainability within our Energy and Chemicals Businesses, our energy efficiency improvement, carbon and GHG emission reduction targets, our net zero carbon emissions ambition and future low-carbon initiatives, including relating to green hydrogen and sustainable aviation fuel; our estimated carbon tax liability; cyber security; and statements of assumptions underlying such statements. Words such as "believe", "anticipate", "expect", "intend", "seek", "will", "plan", "could", "may", "endeavour", "target", "forecast" and "project" and similar expressions are intended to identify forward-looking statements but are not the exclusive means of identifying such statements. By their very nature, forward-looking statements involve inherent risks and uncertainties, both general and specific, and there are risks that the predictions, forecasts, projections, and other forward-looking statements will not be achieved. If one or more of these risks materialise, or should underlying assumptions prove incorrect, our actual results may differ materially from those anticipated. You should understand that a number of important factors could cause actual results to differ materially from the plans, objectives, expectations, estimates and intentions expressed in such forward-looking statements. These factors and others are discussed more fully in our most recent annual report on Form 20-F filed on 31 August 2022 and in other filings with the United States Securities and Exchange Commission. The list of factors discussed therein is not exhaustive; when relying on forward-looking statements to make investment decisions, you should carefully consider foregoing factors and other uncertainties and events, and you should not place undue reliance on forward-looking statements. Forward-looking statements apply only as of the date on which they are made, and we do not undertake any obligation to update or revise any of them, whether as a result of new information, future events or otherwise.
View original content:https://www.prnewswire.com/news-releases/production-and-sales-metrics-for-the-three-months-ended-30-september-2022-operational-update-for-south-africa-and-lake-charles-301654491.html
SOURCE Sasol Limited
FAQ
What caused the recent force majeure declaration by Sasol?
How did the strike impact Sasol's production facilities?
What incident occurred at the Lake Charles Chemicals Complex?
What is the status of the Natref refinery during the Transnet strike?