Transnet says it intends to appeal the judgment handed down by the High Court to pay over R6 billion in damages to Sasol.
In 2017, Sasol and Total Energies took legal action against Transnet for breach of its obligation first agreed in 1967.
The agreement gave the two companies preference to move their crude oil through Transnet Pipelines at favourable rates.
However, Transnet deviated from the agreement and eventually terminated it in 2020.
Energy expert Matthew Cruise, “This comes at a difficult time when Transnet is trying to get all the money it can from the market and now it’s being told that it has to pay out some of the clients that have been paying it. And Transnet now has to charge them less going forward. So, it’s unfortunate that it comes at a time when service delivery is a big focus in the country and one of the largest service delivery entities in the country is experiencing these kinds of legal difficulties.”
