Johannesburg - South Africa will decide next Monday on an application by petrochemicals group Sasol [JSE:SOL] for a license to generate up to 200 megawatts of power using gas, the Business Day newspaper reported on Thursday.
The paper said Sasol - the world's top maker of motor fuel from coal - planned to generate power by running two open cycle gas turbines at the group's Secunda plant to generate 100 MW each. This will also reduce reliance power from state utility Eskom .
Eskom has said it would meet this year's power demand, including during the soccer World Cup, but supply will be tight from 2011-2012 unless new capacity is added.
The Business Day quoted Sasol's spokesperson Jacqui O'sullivan as saying the decision by the country's energy regulator Nersa, could allow the company to convert the open cycle gas turbines to a combined cycle system in 2011, part of the process for generating the power.
"It will also increase Sasol's energy efficiency and reduce its carbon footprint," she said.
- Reuters