Secunda CTL is a synthetic fuel plant owned by Sasol at Secunda, Mpumalanga in South Africa. It uses coal liquefaction to produce petroleum-like synthetic crude oil from coal. The process used by Sasol is based on the Fischer–Tropsch process. It is the largest coal liquefaction plant and the largest single emitter of greenhouse gas in the world.

Secunda CTL consists of two production units. The Sasol II unit was constructed in 1980 and the Sasol III unit in 1984.^[1] It has total production capacity of 160,000 barrels per day (25,000 m³/d).^[2]

Greenhouse gas emissions

As of 2020^[update] it is the world's largest single emitter of greenhouse gas, at 56.5 million tonnes CO₂ a year.^[3] However, if Afşin-Elbistan C power station in Turkey is built and operated at planned capacity it would emit over 60 million tonnes a year, though this project was stopped on the grounds of possible soil and air pollution.

Air Liquide acquired the 42,000 tons/day oxygen production in 2020, with plans for 900 MW power plants to reduce CO₂ emissions.^[4][5]

Unique plant infrastructure

The Sasol III Steam Plant has a 301 m (988 ft) tall chimney built by Concor, which consists of a 292 m (958 ft) high windshield and four 300 m (980 ft) reinforced concrete flues which together with a 1 m (3.3 ft) high temporary roof on the 4th flue make it one the tallest structures in Africa.^[6]

In Media

As a major component of South Africa's economy, Secunda was in turn a major target of the African National Congress during the apartheid era^{[citation needed]}. Two ANC attacks (and their aftermath) were dramatized in the 2006 film Catch a Fire.