A joint venture between Shell SA Refining and BP Southern Africa, SAPREF is Southern Africa’s largest crude oil refinery, with a refining capacity of 8.5 million tons a year. The refinery has been in operation for 47 years. Building work on the SAPREF refinery started in 1960 and the first staff members were employed in June 1963.
SAPREF’s facilities are of national strategic importance. They include the refinery in the South Durban Basin (SDB), storage facilities at the harbour (Island View), a Single Buoy Mooring (SBM) where tankers offload about 78% of South Africa’s crude oil imports and joint bunkering services operated on behalf of various petroleum companies.
We manufacture a variety of petroleum products, including petrol, diesel, paraffin, aviation fuel, liquid petroleum gas, base oil, solvents and marine fuel oil.
SAPREF has a design capacity to process between 180 000 and 190 000 barrels per day depending on the type of crude oil processed. In 2010 SAPREF processed 7.54 million tons of crude, thereby producing approximately 28% marine fuel oil and specialties, 25% petrol and 40% diesel and jet fuel.
SAPREF’s major stakeholders include its surrounding communities, customers, shareholders, suppliers and contractors, trade unions, direct and indirect workforce, authorities and non-governmental organisations.
SAPREF is a Level 3 BBBEE contributor in terms of the Department of Trade and Industry’s Codes of Good Practice. As at 31 December 2010, SAPREF employed 651 permanent staff. SAPREF’s other contributions to the local economy are immense. In 2010 alone we spent 1.3 billion on goods and services, R138million on electricity, R46million on water, R23million on rates, and R11million on social investment.
SAPREF is ISO 9001 and ISO 14001 certified
Vision
SAPREF is a safe, reliable, world-class refiner of petroleum products that deliver excellence to our customers and shareholders, is respected, trusted and has the confidence of our people, our community, the media, local authorities, elected officials and our suppliers. Our behaviour aligns with our values and business principles.