Sasolburg, South Africa – Today, Sasol inaugurated the full completion of its R13,6 billion FT Wax Expansion Project (FTWEP). Phase 2 began beneficial operation in March 2017, while phase 1 was commissioned in 2015.

“With completion of this project, South Africa is now one of the leading countries of wax production globally. “We’re enormously proud of this achievement and believe it is a fine symbol of South Africa’s industrial prowess,” said Bongani Nqwababa, Joint President and Chief Executive Officer, Sasol Limited.

“As one of the leading producers of medium and hard waxes worldwide, Sasol leverages our expertise and proprietary technologies to produce premium waxes that offer unique properties and superior performance for our customers,” added Stephen Cornell, Joint President and Chief Executive Officer, Sasol Limited.

Marketed by the Performance Chemicals team, hard waxes, medium waxes, liquid paraffins and waxy oils are supplied to a variety of industrial and speciality applications. Hard waxes are used in hotmelt adhesives, PVC processing, inks, paints, coatings, and asphalt applications; medium waxes are used in candle markets and emulsions in the manufacturing of construction boards.

Throughout the duration of the project, there were 49 service providers and approximately 5,500 construction workers on site. The project was resourced by 450 engineers with some 22,000 isometric drawings created and 904 pieces of mechanical equipment installed. In excess of 31 million hours were worked with an exceptional safety record of 0.15 recordable case rate (RCR), below the benchmark of projects of this scale.

FTWEP is one of a number of major capital investments the company has made in South Africa, further entrenching the country’s reputation as Africa’s leading industrial nation.