Established in 1954, the Town was built by Sasol Ltd. The former South African Coal, Oil and Gas Corporation Ltd. used this Town to house employees at the World’s first oil-from-coal Plant. They produced commercial quantities of oil. The location was selected for its proximity to large coal deposits, the Vaal River, and the Witwatersrand markets.
A variety of petrochemicals are also produced. A petrochemical, are any of a large group of chemicals (as distinct from fuels) derived from petroleum and natural gas and used for a variety of Commercial purposes. The definition, however, has been broadened to include the whole range of aliphatic, aromatic, and naphthenic organic chemicals, as well as black carbon and such inorganic materials as sulfur and ammonia. In many instances, a specific chemical included among the petrochemicals may also be obtained from other sources, such as coal, coke, or vegetable products. For example, materials such as benzene and naphthalene can be made from either petroleum or coal, while ethyl alcohol may be of petrochemical or vegetable origin. This makes it difficult to categorize a specific substance as, strictly speaking, petrochemical or non-petrochemical. Products made from petrochemicals include such items as plastics, soaps and detergents, solvents, drugs, fertilizers, pesticides, explosives, synthetic fibres and rubbers, paints, epoxy resins, and flooring and insulating materials. Petrochemicals are found in products as diverse as aspirin, luggage, boats, automobiles, aircraft, polyester clothes, and recording discs and tapes.
The Green hydrogen produced by Sasol is produced by using renewable electricity to split water into hydrogen and oxygen. The hydrogen would be used in established domestic value chains in industry and heavy-duty transport, as well as to provide back-up electricity generation. In parallel, Sasol would pursue greenfield projects in the South Africa and the Namibian “solar belt”, within a special economic zone to be developed at Boegoebaai, in the Northern Cape, and 20-km South of the Namibian border. Sasolburg attained official Town status, in 1967. 2001 it had a population of 24,571 people.