Following the announcement on July 29, 2020, Air Liquide (Paris:AI) has now entered into a business purchase agreement with Sasol for Air Liquide to acquire the biggest oxygen production site in the world located in Secunda, South Africa. In addition to the benefits this would bring in terms of safety, reliability and efficiency, the solution provided by Air Liquide would allow, in coordination with Sasol, a targeted reduction of 30% to 40% in CO2 emissions arising from the oxygen production by 2030.
Under the terms of the business purchase agreement, Air Liquide will own and operate the 16 air separation units (ASU) of this site, with an installed capacity of 42,000 tons/day, in addition to the unit it already operates today. Subsequent to the acquisition, Air Liquide will supply various gases to Sasol’s operation under a long-term gas supply agreement with an initial term of 15 years.
The amount of the initial investment would be approximately 8.5 billion South African Rand (circa 440 million euros).
The agreements are subject to usual suspensive conditions (notably the South African Competition Authority’s approval), which should not be fulfilled earlier than December 2020.
A world leader in gases, technologies and services for Industry and Health, Air Liquide is present in 80 countries with approximately 67,000 employees and serves more than 3.7 million customers and patients. Oxygen, nitrogen and hydrogen are essential small molecules for life, matter and energy. They embody Air Liquide’s scientific territory and have been at the core of the company’s activities since its creation in 1902.
Air Liquide’s ambition is to be a leader in its industry, deliver long term performance and contribute to sustainability. The company’s customer-centric transformation strategy aims at profitable, regular and responsible growth over the long term. It relies on operational excellence, selective investments, open innovation and a network organization implemented by the Group worldwide. Through the commitment and inventiveness of its people, Air Liquide leverages energy and environment transition, changes in healthcare and digitization, and delivers greater value to all its stakeholders.
Air Liquide’s revenue amounted to 22 billion euros in 2019 and its solutions that protect life and the environment represented more than 40% of sales. Air Liquide is listed on the Euronext Paris stock exchange (compartment A) and belongs to the CAC 40, EURO STOXX 50 and FTSE4Good indexes.
www.airliquide.com
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