Sasol to discontinue oil operations in West Africa

South Africa-based energy firm Sasol has announced plans to end its West African oil operations as it seeks to revamp its business structure.

The company cited weaker oil prices and lower demand due to Covid-19 as the primary reasons for the organisational overhaul.

Sasol noted that the redesign of the organisation would have an impact on its workforce, but did not disclose how many jobs might be lost.

The revised business model is expected to be announced in the second quarter of FY2021.

Sasol said in a statement: “A focused and robust review of the business, and the associated workforce structures, is underway and a detailed update will be provided to stakeholders alongside the full year results.

“The review has identified that the future Sasol business, ‘Sasol 2.0’, will be focused on two core businesses, chemicals and energy (the businesses).

“The chemicals business will focus on its activities in specialty chemicals where it has differentiated capabilities and strong market positions which can be expanded over time. The energy business will comprise the Southern African value chain and associated assets and will pursue greenhouse gas emission reduction (GHG) through focus on gas as a key feedstock and renewables as a secondary energy source.”

Recently, Sasol donated 4,500 litres of hand sanitiser to the Gauteng Department of Health, as part of its support for citizens across Gauteng during the current Covid-19 crisis.

In April this year, Sasol announced the launch of TERRAVIS PI for the global oil and gas market. The TERRAVIS PI series is designed to be a cost-effective solution and serves as an alternate to expensive heavy paraffinic crude operations options, especially in colder environments.