Secunda, Mpumalanga

Secunda at a glance

Secunda is a fairly new town built around coalfields in Mpumalanga, South Africa. It was named so, for being the second extraction refinery location for oil from coal (second to the Sasolburg refinery).

The town of Secunda was built when the construction of ‘Sasol Two’ commenced. Sasol Two and Sasol Three produce synthetic fuel, diesel, and related fuels and petrochemicals from coal gasification and a town was built to house the labour force and form a thriving community. The town now has 40,000 inhabitants, with an additional 245,000 people living in the nearby Embhalenhle community. The town has experienced significant growth in the past 5 years due to the expansions underway at the Sasol complex and further growth to the Sasol complex will no doubt make for even more growth.

The highest structure in Secunda is the 301 metre high chimney at the Sasol Three plant. The chimney is an Eskom type chimney comprising four 301 metre high refractory brick lined concrete flues of 4.6 metre diameter each. The windshield is 292 metres high with an internal diameter of 26 metres. The chimney was constructed by Concrete as part of a contract to construct the Sasol Three steam plant with Hochtief. The foundations of the chimney comprised vertical and raked piles. This chimney happens to be one of the tallest free-standing structures in the Southern Hemisphere and is quite a sight.

Secunda has a casino and country club. This is a very relaxing destination with plenty to see in the way of engineering and man-made marvels. The community is friendly, welcoming and pleasant which makes Secunda a great stop-over destination.