Chemicals and energy group Sasol is ramping up the shutdown, or mothballing, of some of its noncore international operations as part of its restructuring and cost optimisation efforts.
In a statement on Tuesday, the company said it has already stopped production at its Guerbet plant in Lake Charles in the US and the alkylphenol site in Marl, Germany.
The closure of its phenolics plants in Texas in the US, and the mothballing of the hydrofluoric acid linear-alkylbenzene (HF LAB) plant in Augusta, Italy, are expected to follow in the first half of the new financial year.
The affected plants are part of Sasol’s international chemicals business, which supplies speciality chemicals to sectors such as pharmaceuticals, personal care, detergents and industrial manufacturing.
At its capital markets day in May, Sasol flagged persistent weak demand, global overcapacity and high input costs across its international chemicals segments as challenges. It said consolidation measures — including exiting less competitive business lines and mothballing higher-cost plants — were necessary to protect margins and free up capital.
The Lake Charles Guerbet plant produces chemical intermediates used in pharmaceuticals, cosmetics and personal care products. The site in Germany manufactures alkylphenols, used in detergents, emulsifiers and other industrial applications. Both facilities supply niche chemical markets outside SA.
The plants in Texas produce phenol and acetone, building blocks for plastics and resins — sticky natural or synthetic substances used in coatings, adhesives, varnishes and industrial materials. The HF LAB plant supplies hydrofluoric acid derivatives used in a range of industrial processes, including marking glass, cleaning metals and producing fuel, refrigerants, plastics and electronic components.
These assets have come under pressure due to weak global demand in speciality chemicals, structural overcapacity and persistently high feedstock and energy costs.
In the US, tariffs and trade uncertainty have reduced phenolics volumes and margins, prompting Sasol’s decision to exit the US phenolics business and move ahead with planned plant closures. In Europe, the chemical sector is grappling with sluggish demand and rising environmental compliance costs, while broader inflation and geopolitical risks continue to affect operations.
At the capital markets day, the company’s leadership pointed to the need to stabilise its core business by improving coal quality and gasification performance at the Secunda plant, crucial to Sasol’s feedstock supply, alongside broader plans for asset optimisation and sustainability initiatives.
In a trading statement on Tuesday, Sasol said it expects to meet most of its financial guidance for the 2025 financial year, with volume guidance achieved across most business segments.
The group will release its annual financial results on August 25.
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