JOHANNESBURG, Aug. 31, 2020 /PRNewswire/ -- On 27 August 2020, Hurricane Laura made landfall
near Sasol's Lake Charles Chemicals Complex in Southwest Louisiana.
Sasol activated its inclement weather protocols ahead of the
storm at all affected Gulf Coast locations in preparation for
Hurricane Laura, with the primary concern being the safety of our
workforce, the protection of the environment and the integrity of
our facilities. Part of the response was to temporarily shut down
facilities at Lake Charles,
Louisiana, as well as Greens Bayou and Winnie, Texas.
Sasol is supporting its employees in the impacted areas,
assisting with temporary housing, transportation and basic
amenities for those affected by the storm.
The storm resulted in widespread electrical blackouts and other
damage, preventing Sasol from operating most utility systems. High
voltage transmission line corridors into the Lake Charles area are damaged, and the full
assessment is still in progress by a local power company. Sasol's
manufacturing facilities in Lake
Charles remain shut down.
Operations recovery crews at the Lake
Charles site have started the damage assessment process, and
early reports indicate no apparent damage to process equipment and
no flooding damage experienced as a result of storm surge. The high
wind speeds caused damage to the cooling towers at the Lake Charles
Chemicals Complex.
Other Sasol manufacturing operations in the United States in Greens Bayou and
Winnie, Texas, were not impacted
by the storm.
Start-up of the plants will depend on the availability of
electricity, industrial gases, other feedstocks and the restoration
process. We are engaging with our customers and suppliers regularly
regarding the impacts on production.
Sasol has Atlantic Named Wind Storm (ANWS) insurance coverage
for units under construction as well as operating units.
Sasol will update the market as more certainty on the situation
in Lake Charles is obtained. We do
not envisage that the hurricane will have an adverse impact on any
potential divestment transaction related to Sasol's base chemical
portfolio in the United
States.
For further information, please contact:
Sasol Investor Relations,
Feroza Syed, Chief Investor
Relations Officer
Direct telephone: +27 (0) 82 557 7740
investor.relations@sasol.com
Disclaimer - 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, expectations, developments and business
strategies. Examples of such forward-looking statements include,
but are not limited to, the impact of the novel coronavirus
(COVID-19) pandemic on Sasol's business, results of operations,
financial condition and liquidity and statements regarding the
effectiveness of any actions taken by Sasol to address or limit any
impact of COVID-19 on its business; statements regarding exchange
rate fluctuations, changing crude oil prices , volume growth,
increases in market share, total shareholder return, executing our
growth projects (including LCCP), oil and gas reserves, cost
reductions, our climate change strategy and business performance
outlook. Words such as "believe", "anticipate", "expect", "intend",
"seek", "will", "plan", "could", "may", "endeavour", "target",
"forecast" 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 and others are discussed
more fully in our most recent annual report on Form 20-F filed on
24 August 2020 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.
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SOURCE Sasol Limited