Air Liquide and Sasol sign renewable energy supply agreement in South Africa

French industrial gas company Air Liquide and South African energy company Sasol have signed a power purchase agreement (PPA) with Enel Green Power to supply an additional 110 MW of renewable electricity to Sasol's Secunda plant in southern Africa.

Air Liquide and Sasol said this is the fourth power purchase agreement signed, following one announced in 2023. These PPAs total approximately 690 MW of renewable energy generation capacity. For Air Liquide, the contracts will allow it to reduce CO2 emissions by approximately 1.2 million tonnes per year and contribute to its goal of reducing CO2 emissions associated with oxygen production at Secunda by 30% to 40% by 2031.

As part of the agreement, Enel Green Power will create a local company that will build a wind farm in the Eastern Cape. The renewable energy production facility is scheduled to become operational in 2026.

Nicolas Poirot, CEO of Air Liquide Africa Middle-East & India said: “These new renewable energy power supply agreements are another sign of our shared strong commitment to decarbonizing Secunda’s oxygen production since Air Liquide takes over the Sasol site in 2021. These long-term contracts will actively support the development of renewable energy in South Africa, benefiting the country’s electricity system and ultimately benefiting the just transformation of South African society. "

Air Liquide acquired Sasol's 16 oxygen production units in Secunda and operated them from June 2021 within the framework of a long-term supply contract with its partner. Including another air separation unit (ASU) already operating for Sasol, Air Liquide operates a total of 17 ASUs at Secunda with a total capacity of 47,000 tonnes/day of oxygen.