Petrochemical group Sasol (Johannesburg / South Africa; www.sasol.com) has received bids for a major stake in its nearly complete complex in Lake Charles, Louisiana / USA from companies including Ineos (London / UK; www.ineos.com), Chevron Phillips Chemical (The Woodlands, Texas / USA; www.cpchem.com) and LyondellBasell (LYB, Houston, Texas; www.lyondellbasell.com), according to Bloomberg. The stake is reported to be around EUR 1.8 bn.

With the cost of the trouble-plagued Lake Charles project that includes an ethane cracker doubling from the amount initially intended to more than EUR 11 bn, the South African group could evidently use the cash for the debt it has acquired for building the complex (see Plasteurope.com of 28.02.2020). Sasol’s share price has tumbled more than 60% since the start of 2020.