Secunda, Mpumalanga
| Secunda | |
|---|---|
 Secunda
Secunda
Secunda
Secunda shown within Mpumalanga
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| Coordinates: 26°30′58″S 29°12′10″E / 26.51611°S 29.20278°ECoordinates: 26°30′58″S 29°12′10″E / 26.51611°S 29.20278°E | |
| Country | South Africa |
| Province | Mpumalanga |
| District | Gert Sibande |
| Municipality | Govan Mbeki |
| Established | 1974 |
| Area | |
| • Total | 173.71 km2 (67.07 sq mi) |
| Population (2011) | |
| • Total | 40,198 |
| • Density | 230/km2 (600/sq mi) |
| Racial makeup (2011) | |
| • Black African | 20.6% |
| • Coloured | 3.8% |
| • Indian/Asian | 3.0% |
| • White | 71.9% |
| • Other | 0.7% |
| First languages (2011) | |
| • Afrikaans | 69.5% |
| • English | 13.3% |
| • Zulu | 6.5% |
| • Sotho | 2.5% |
| • Other | 8.1% |
| Postal code (street) | 2302 |
| PO box | 2302 |
| Area code | 017 |
Secunda (from Latin: second, secund, secundi meaning second/following) is a town built amidst the coalfields of the Mpumalanga province of South Africa. It was named for being the second extraction refinery producing oil from coal, after Sasolburg, some 140 kilometres (87 mi) to the west.
During the summer, Secunda has a very pleasant climate with an average temperature of 25.2 °C. During the winter, the nights are cold, and frost regularly occurs. The days are dry, sunny and warm with an average day temperature of 16.2 °C.
Secunda is situated on the latitude 26° and longitude 29° and is 1,620 meters above sea level. It is 180 kilometers from Pretoria, 135 kilometers from Johannesburg, 100 km from Brakpan and 250 km from Potchefstroom
As coal is the main ingredient for the industrial process, Sasol Two had to be developed around a coal field. The five coal mines, namely Brandspruit, Middelbult, Bosjesspruit, Twistdraai and Syferfontein, form the largest underground coal mining complex in South Africa and annually supply approximately 37,3 million tons of coal to Sasol Synthetic Fuels.
Another important factor determining its location, was the availability of water. Water for Sasol is supplied from Grootdraai Dam near Standerton.
Secunda has the 1973 oil crisis to thank for its existence, as it was founded to make South Africa less dependent on the importation of crude oil. It is doubtful whether an industry such as Sasol Synfuels ever formed part of the plans when Sasol One was formed in the 1950s. Sasol Two (1980) and Sasol Three (1982), known as Secunda CTL, the largest coal liquefaction plant in the world, produces synthetic fuel, diesel, and related fuels and petrochemicals from coal gasification. Sasol Synfuels (previously known as Sasol Two and Sasol Three) are large industrial refineries, within view, and sometimes earshot, of the town of Secunda.
After the site for the Sasol complex had been identified, it had to be decided whether or not to combine the existing towns of Evander and Trichardt. The huge burden that extensions of this nature would have had on the financial and administrative resources of the established communities as well as the tempo at which such development should proceed was decisive and resulted in the decision to develop Trichardt and Secunda to be one town, named Secunda. Evander however stayed a separate town.
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Wikipedia