Sasol the world's largest producer of fuel from coal, is looking at spending an additional ZAR 40 billion in the southern African region over the next three to four years. This is after spending ZAR 42 billion in the region over the past few years.

Speaking at the inauguration of Sasol Synfuels International's ZAR 1 billion cobalt catalyst plant in Sasolburg, Sasol senior group executive Lean Strauss said that Sasol remained committed to its SA roots. He said that "As Sasol's growth takes us around the world, we remain firmly rooted in SA and continue to make significant investments in growth opportunities at home, as well as in the southern African region.”

Using noble metals to activate the catalyst, the catalyst manufacturing process has been described as the heart of the technology that makes its gas to liquids process possible.

Sasol has been actively seeking to grow the number of GTL plants it operates globally and while the SA plant will initially be supplying its existing GTL sites in Qatar, Nigeria and Uzbekistan, it would later become a supplier to new plants as they were added.

Before commissioning of the new plant in Sasolburg, cobalt catalyst has been supplied from Sasol's manufacturing partner, BASF, from the world's first large scale cobalt catalyst manufacturing facility in De Meern, Utrecht in Netherlands.

This facility was expanded with a second plant in 2006.

(Sourced from www.sowetanlive.co.za)