Sasol launches VC fund to advance decarbonisation ambitions

South Africa’s Sasol has established Sasol Ventures to advance its decarbonisation and 2050 net zero ambitions through venture capital, it said on February 21. It will invest €50mn over the next five years.

The company has partnered with Emerald Technology Ventures, a specialised global venture capital firm, to enable Sasol Ventures to source and evaluate opportunities with the objective of growing a portfolio for the fund.

Through this partnership, Sasol has also directly invested in Emerald’s global energy transformation fund to maximise its innovation opportunities. It will complement Sasol’s existing research and technology capabilities in sourcing and evaluating technologies and solutions.

The fund will pursue investments in start-up and early-stage technologies that will enable Sasol to meet the need for sustainable chemicals and energy solutions to decarbonise its business, communities and markets it serves globally.

“We are very excited with the prospect of Sasol Ventures playing a key role in our decarbonisation ambitions. As the world accelerates its energy systems towards more sustainable systems through emerging and disruptive technologies, Sasol Ventures places us in a position to access technology opportunities that will contribute to transforming our business,” said Fleetwood Grobler, CEO of Sasol.