2022 Sasol Sustainability Report - Book - Page 53
SUSTAINABILITY PERFORMANCE AGAINST OUR FOCUS AREAS
INTRODUCTION
DATA AND ASSURANCE
MANAGING OUR ENVIRONMENTAL FOOTPRINT (CONTINUED)
Air quality management
We acknowledge the link between our activities and air quality and the
need to act responsibly in managing our impacts in the regions in which
we operate. We have a holistic air quality management approach, which is
informed by internationally accepted practices.
OUR APPROACH
Our approach to air quality management and ambient air quality improvement is reflected in our
SHE Policy. This includes our ongoing efforts to prevent pollution and air quality degradation through
legal compliance and the application of our duty of care. We follow a risk-based approach to mitigate
and improve on our atmospheric footprint.
We remain committed to engage and collaborate with our key stakeholders and are transparent about
our commitments on our air quality improvement journey. To this end, we participate in policy and
regulatory developments as well as in community initiatives. We continuously monitor our performance,
report to the authorities thereon and disclose appropriately to our stakeholders.
WHAT WE ARE DOING
Our air quality landscape
Our Southern African operations are dependent on coal and gas as
primary feedstocks, with our Natref facility in Sasolburg reliant on
crude oil. Outside Africa, our international operations depend on a
diverse feedstock portfolio including coal, gas and crude oil
derived feedstock.
Although our coal feedstock technologies in South Africa make up
the greatest portion of our contribution to the relevant airsheds,
Sasol has committed to reduce its dependence on coal, as a part of
its decarbonisation strategy. Over time, this strategy is expected to
have a significant positive impact on our atmospheric footprint.
Historically, the contribution to emissions of our Eurasian and
Mozambique operations has been minimal compared to that of
our coal processes. Our North American operations’ contribution
to our atmospheric release inventory remain limited compared
to our South African operations, even with production ramp-up.
Managing air quality compliance
Our intent is to achieve compliance to the prescribed minimum
emission standards (MES) by 1 April 2025 as reflected in our respective
atmospheric emission licences (AELs) for all point sources, except
sulphur dioxide (SO2) emissions from the boilers at the steam plants
at Secunda Operations (SO). This commitment stands alongside Sasol’s
long-term ambition to transform its operations to lower carbon options,
meet its GHG reduction target towards Net Zero by 2050 and to reduce
its overall environmental footprint.
Against this backdrop, SO identified a feasible compliance approach,
exploiting synergies through an integrated GHG and boiler SO2 reduction
roadmap, referred to as the integrated reduction roadmap. This
integrated air quality and GHG reduction roadmap involves the turning
down of boilers not only to reduce SO2 emissions (with benefits
anticipated to be realised from 2025 onwards), but to also have a
favourable impact on the reduction of GHGs and other pollutants
emitted from the boilers. It supports the Sasol long-term ambition to
transform our operations to lower-carbon options and to reduce our
overall environmental footprint. This approach would see the overall
mass of SO2 (and other pollutants) emitted, per day and per final
product, reduced. In this manner, SO aims to achieve a 30% total load
reduction in SO2 emissions by 2030, which is significantly more than
what would otherwise be achieved under the applicable concentration
limits in the MES. To enable the implementation, multiple projects are
required, including construction of additional gas conversion capacity,
a fine coal solution, renewable energy and EnEf projects. As consistently
communicated previously, the implementation of this integrated
roadmap will extend beyond 1 April 2025.
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The implementation depends on SO being regulated on a load-based
emission limit (the mass and the rate of the pollutant emissions) instead
of the concentration limit (the mass of pollutant per cubic metre of air
emitted) as provided for in the MES. Clause 12A of the MES provides for
an existing plant, such as the SO’s Steam Plant, to apply to the National
Air Quality Officer for an emission load limit to be granted in certain
instances, including SO’s current circumstances. SO appointed Air
Resource Management (Pty) Ltd (ARM), an independent environmental
consultancy, to undertake the associated public participation process
and assist in preparing the application. SO submitted its application
which included a comprehensive public participation report to the
National Air Quality Officer on 29 June, in accordance with the
provisions of a condonation granted in January 2022 by the Minister
of the Department of Fisheries, Forestry and the Environment (DFFE).
We await the outcome of the application.
We previously reported that, during 2020, we applied for further
postponement for four additional sources at SO following the
inclusion of these point sources in the Secunda AEL upon review thereof.
SO conducted the baseline emission monitoring for these point sources
as required in accordance with its revised AEL.
The baseline monitoring informed the postponement application (with a
view to also inform the relevant monitoring and reporting requirements)
that is pending for these point sources.