Air Liquide AIQUY and Sasol recently inked new Power Purchase Agreements (PPAs) with Enel Green Power RSA to supply of an additional 110 MW of renewable power to Sasol’s Secunda site in South Africa. This agreement marks the fourth set of PPAs between Air Liquide and Sasol, following those established in 2023, with a cumulative renewable power capacity now totaling around 690 MW.

These contracts will facilitate an annual reduction of approximately 1.2 million tons in CO2 emissions for Air Liquide and contribute significantly to its goal of reducing CO2 emissions associated with oxygen production in Secunda by 30-40% by 2031.

Air Liquide Price and Consensus

 

Air Liquide price-consensus-chart | Air Liquide Quote

 

Enel Green Power will establish a local company committed to socio-economic development tasked with constructing a wind farm in South Africa's Eastern Cape province. The wind farm is slated to become operational by 2026.

Nicolas Poirot, CEO of Africa Middle-East & India, emphasized that the newly-forged renewable electricity supply agreements reaffirm the steadfast joint dedication to decarbonizing oxygen production in Secunda following Air Liquide's acquisition of Sasol's units in 2021. These enduring contracts will play a pivotal role in advancing renewable energy development in South Africa, thereby enhancing the nation's electrical infrastructure and fostering societal progress within the framework of a Just Transition.

Air Liquide acquired Sasol's 16 oxygen production units in Secunda in June 2021 and has since operated them under a long-term supply contract. With an additional Air Separation Unit (ASU) already under its operation for Sasol, Air Liquide now oversees a total of 17 ASUs in Secunda, boasting a collective capacity of 47,000 tons/day of oxygen. Air Liquide aims to reduce CO2 emissions (Scope 2) from the 16 oxygen production units it acquired from Sasol by 30% to 40% through a comprehensive investment and modernization plan, coupled with a substantial increase in renewable energy procurement.

Shares of Air Liquide have gained 28.3% in the past year compared with a 15.3% fall of the industry.

Image Source: Zacks Investment Research

Zacks Rank & Key Picks

Air Liquide currently carries a Zacks Rank #3 (Hold).

Some better-ranked stocks in the Basic Materials space are Carpenter Technology Corporation CRS, sporting a Zacks Rank #1 (Strong Buy), Eldorado Gold Corporation EGO and Hawkins, Inc. HWKN, both carrying a Zacks Rank #2 (Buy). You can see the complete list of today’s Zacks #1 Rank stocks here.