Oil, gas and chemicals giant Sasol sold 14.3-million barrels of liquid fuels in the September quarter, putting it on track for full-year guidance of 61-million barrels, it said on Thursday. Sasol’s shares were 0.55% weaker at R385.46 in late trade on the JSE as Brent crude oil slid 0.84% to $50.35 a barrel on uncertainty about the ability of the Organisation of the Petroleum Exporting Countries (Opec) to agree on or enforce output cuts to raise prices. Analysts are closely watching progress on Sasol’s ambitious $11bn ethane cracker project in Lake Charles, Louisiana after a recent $2.1bn increase in the total cost. Sasol said the project was 55% complete, with $5.5bn of the capital spent. The project would increase Sasol’s income from chemicals, which offer higher margins than liquid fuels. Sasol mined 14.5% less coal at 8.2-million tonnes compared with the same quarter in 2015 because of industrial action, requiring an increase in external coal purchases to meet the requirements of...
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