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Gold/Mining/Energy : Gasification Technologies -- Ignore unavailable to you. Want to Upgrade?

To: Dennis Roth who wrote (1313)	10/24/2008 7:36:20 AM
From: Dennis Roth	Respond to of 1740

Sasol applies for Indian coal blocks in JV with Tata miningweekly.com By: Martin Creamer Published on 24th October 2008 Sasol has signed a memorandum of understanding with the large Indian conglomerate, Tata, for long-term access to a number of coal blocks in India, for which application has been made. Depending on the success of the coal-block applications, the Sasol-Tata joint venture (JV) will enter into a prefeasibility study of the potential for the development of a coal-to-liquids (CTL) project in India. “Sasol is working with Tata on possible CTL opportunities,” says Sasol CEO Pat Davies. Tata is the large Indian conglomerate headed by Ratan Tata, who has encouraged investment in South Africa. The JV represents another Tata link with South Africa, where the company supplies vehicles and has invested in a ferrochrome plant at Richards Bay, in KwaZulu-Natal. Tata Communications and Tata Africa hold 56% of the shares of South Africa’s second network operator, Neotel. Nexus, Communitel and Two Telecom Consortium are the other stakeholders in Neotel. Tata is a $29-billion group. Mumbai-born Tata, 71, who is a member of South Africa’s International Investment Council, sits on the Central Board of the Reserve Bank of India, is a member of the Indian Prime Minister’s Council on Trade and Industry. Sasol Strategy Sasol’s strategy is to replicate what it is doing at Secunda, in Mpumalanga province, by building hubs in other parts of South Africa and around the world, based on coal and natural gas. Its strategic framework needs to be viewed in the context of the broader global oil and gas industry landscape, where there have been key macro shifts. Creation of new hubs, however, needs to be supported by a strong oil price. The increasing global demand for oil and the rate at which this demand is expected to increase in the future are presenting strong prospects. Currently, 3,5-billion people in India and China consume less than 0,01 bbl/d. But as China and India grow, consumption is expected to rise to the same levels as those of the developed world, with the US level at 0,07 bbl/d. Oil demand in China and India alone is expected to rise to 17-mil- lion barrels a day compared with world demand of 80-million barrels a day. To meet this need, significant growth has to occur. But, because oil supply is becoming tighter and because existing sources are unable to supply that demand, Davies says that alternatives are clearly required. Among the main alternatives are coal and gas, which tend to offer more energy security than oil because of the far larger reserves of coal and gas in the world than reserves of oil. The limited oil-reserve outlook is creating a sweet spot for Sasol, because of the company’s ability to produce petrol, diesel and jet fuel from coal and gas through CTL and gas-to-liquids technologies. Countries with significant quantities of coal include the US, which has vastly more coal than gas and oil, as well as Russia, China, India, Australia and South Africa, with South Africa having as much coal, in barrels of oil equivalent, as Saudi Arabia. These are thus the countries on which Sasol is focusing, against a background of transport fuel representing 40% of the world’s total energy demand. Editor: Shannon O’Donnell