Sasol Performance Chemicals Expands Catalyst Carrier Production Capacity

BRUNSBÜTTEL, Germany, May 20, 2015 /CNW/ - Today, Sasol announced that it has expanded the production capacity of its alumina spheres plant in Brunsbüttel to 4,000 tonnes per annum. Through the company's Performance Chemicals Inorganics & Catalyst division, a leading global producer of inorganic specialities, it produces high purity and ultra-high purity alumina that is used in a range of catalytic and non-catalytic applications.

The expansion marks another step in the company strengthening its position in the alumina market to meet growing market demand for alumina-based shaped carrier materials for industrial catalytic and non-catalytic applications. Due to physical and chemical properties, the shaped carriers produced by Sasol's Performance Chemicals Inorganics & Catalyst division are sought-after in fast-growing markets, such as the refinery catalyst market.

Sasol can meet its customers' increasing demands due to its ability to control the physical and chemical properties of its products. This includes tailoring the porosity of its spheres and producing spheres doped with various elements at the request of the customer. A key strength is that it can tailor make near-perfect spherical alumina spheres with a narrow size distribution and low attrition that serves as effective carriers for various industrial applications.

"Demand for our shaped carrier materials has been growing significantly thanks to Sasol Performance Chemicals' ability to deliver innovative and tailored solutions in close collaboration with its customers," said Dr. Klaus Diblitz, Vice President Inorganics & Catalyst at Sasol Performance Chemicals. "This move to debottleneck capacity shows we are determined to keep pace with this growing demand worldwide and with our customers' specific product requirements."

Sasol's Performance Chemicals division has a wide range of shaped carrier materials for catalytic and non-catalytic applications covering a range of products from extrudates and tablets to zeolite-doped and customised metal-doped spheres. The company is well placed to add value to its customers globally as its products have unique properties derived from Sasol's proprietary production process and the high-purity alumina raw materials used in production.  

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, developments and business strategies. Examples of such forward-looking statements include, but are not limited to, statements regarding exchange rate fluctuations, volume growth, increases in market share, total shareholder return and cost reductions. Words such as "believe", "anticipate", "expect", "intend", "seek", "will", "plan", "could", "may", "endeavour" and "project" and similar expressions are intended to identify such 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 are discussed more fully in our most recent annual report under the Securities Exchange Act of 1934 on Form 20-F filed on 29 September 2014 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 both these factors and other uncertainties and events. 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.

About Sasol:

Sasol is an international integrated energy and chemicals company that leverages the talent and expertise of our more than 32 400 people working in 37 countries. We develop and commercialise technologies, and build and operate world-scale facilities to produce a range of high-value product streams, including liquid fuels, chemicals and low-carbon electricity.

SOURCE Sasol

Issued by: Alex Anderson, Head of Group Media Relations, Direct telephone [phone]; Mobile [phone]; [email protected]