Sasol Chemicals, a business unit of Sasol Ltd., announced that its Brunsbüttel, Germany manufacturing facility is obtaining all of its external electricity from renewable sources.
“This is a significant step toward meeting Sasol Chemicals’ ambitious long-term sustainability objectives”
Jens Straatmann, SVP, Eurasia Chemicals
“This is a significant step toward meeting Sasol Chemicals’ ambitious long-term sustainability objectives,” said Jens Straatmann, Senior Vice President, Eurasia Chemicals. "The Brunsbüttel facility is proof that we can obtain all external electricity for a major manufacturing site from green sources, and it can serve as a model for other facilities across the company.”
The recent move to full renewable external power was made possible by a power purchase agreement with MTB new energy, a German company that generates wind power at a site in the ChemCoast Park Brunsbüttel. This wind power adds to green energy already supplied by local power company Stadtwerke Brunsbüttel as well as origin-certified electricity from Norwegian hydropower.
This is the latest step in Brunsbüttel’s green transition. In 2014, the plant began receiving 80,000 tons of “green steam” annually from a local biomass cogeneration facility. It is also working with MTB and Stadtwerke Brunsbüttel to build a large-scale photovoltaic system on the site, generating up to 6 million kilowatts of solar power a year.
Sasol Chemicals has committed to a 30 percent reduction in its scope 1 and scope 2 greenhouse gas emissions by 2030. Using renewable energy to power its manufacturing facilities is a key lever in achieving this ambition, along with process improvements; investments in energy efficiency; and carbon capture, use and storage. These goals are part of parent company Sasol Ltd.’s commitment to net-zero by 2050.
Sasol’s Brunsbüttel facility, its largest in Germany, is located 80 kilometers (50 miles) northwest of Hamburg near the Kiel Canal and produces a broad range of organic and inorganic products. The site's organic products are used in a range of daily applications including detergents and cleaning agents, cosmetics and pharmaceuticals, as well as in various technical applications. The site’s inorganic products are key components in catalysts, high-performance abrasives and polymer additives.
