Sasol, an integrated chemicals and energy company headquartered in South Africa, relies on Java to power more than 150 business-critical applications supporting its approximately $14B in annual turnover (R249.10 billion ZAR). Java is deeply embedded in the company’s IT landscape, ensuring smooth company operations and mitigating the risk of any potential production disruptions, shutdowns, and safety incidents. As such, Sasol is constantly finding opportunities to innovate and digitize its operations as well as partnering with solution providers like Azul to support application resilience and vulnerability protection. However, prior to selecting Azul, Sasol faced growing risks and costs tied to its Java environment:
– Escalating costs: Oracle’s erratically changing license model for Java SE drove significant and unpredictable expenses.
– Compliance complexity: Complex Oracle license terms and audit exposure carried legal and financial risks.
– Security concerns: Unsupported or outdated Java versions left Sasol increasingly vulnerable to cyber threats over time.
In the area of security in particular, Sasol faced several serious risks:
– Unsupported or outdated Java versions: Running older versions of Oracle Java including Java 6 and 7 exposed Sasol to vulnerabilities, as these versions no longer received regular security updates from Oracle.
– Compliance gaps: Without up-to-date patches and support, Sasol risked non-compliance with internal and external security standards.
– Audit exposure: Oracle’s licensing and audit requirements meant that any unlicensed or unauthorized Java installations could result in legal and financial risks.
– Operational risk: Sasol’s legacy Java applications increased the likelihood of security incidents which could disrupt business-critical applications which could lead to disruption of operations, erosion of customer trust, and/or regulatory penalties like the European Union’s General Data Protection Regulation (GDPR) and South Africa’s Critical Infrastructure Protection Act (Bill).
Sasol needed a sustainable, cost-effective, and secure solution to standardize its Java runtime environment while continuing its digital modernization. They wanted to migrate their Java applications away from Oracle Java SE but, before meeting Azul, this was perceived as risky, complex, and potentially disruptive, with significant concerns about security, compliance, cost, and operational continuity.
Sasol selected Azul Core after evaluating its ability to meet security, compliance, and cost requirements and found its unique benefits align with their strategic IT and business goals, including:
– Enterprise-grade support with regular security updates.
– Cost savings through simplified and transparent licensing.
– Compatibility and flexibility to support both legacy and modern Java applications. In fact, Azul supports more Java versions, platforms, and technologies than any other vendor (including Java 6 & 7, Java Applet deployments, and Java Web Start).
The decision was made in close collaboration with Optim-G, Sasol’s IT services partner specializing in optimization, automation, and digital transformation, and the preferred migration partner for Sasol’s Java migration project. After Azul successfully satisfied a robust, two-month Proof of Value (PoV) test, Optim-G supported a smooth migration from Oracle Java to Azul across Sasol’s IT environment. Highlights:
– Timeline: Proof of Value completed in late 2024; full migration was completed between April and September 2025.
– Scope: Standardized over 150 applications across 7,000 devices and 200 servers.
– Partnership: Azul provided hands-on engineering support, while Optim-G ensured operational alignment and service management.
Commenting on Sasol’s successful migration, Shailendra Nathoo, Sasol’s Senior Lead for IT Asset Management, noted that “migrating away from Oracle Java is a strategic decision.” How to ensure success? “Carefully evaluate alternatives, prioritize security and support, ensure compatibility with legacy systems, focus on cost and compliance, and plan for business continuity,” he says. “A well-run PoV, strong stakeholder engagement, and solution partners like Azul and Optim-G are key to a successful migration.”
Sasol has deployed multiple Java applications and Java-based technologies on Azul Core, including a wide range of business-critical applications across the company’s IT landscape. In addition, the migration to Azul is part of a broader strategy to standardize and future-proof Sasol’s Java environment, supporting both legacy and modern applications. Results to date include:
– Reduced costs: Eliminated expensive Oracle licensing fees by 92%, reducing total spend while simplifying compliance.
– Improved security: Migrating to Azul helped Sasol address security risks by providing a supported, regularly updated Java runtime, reducing exposure to vulnerabilities and audit-related issues.
– Operational efficiency: Standardizing the Java runtime improved sustainability, reduced downtime, and boosted productivity.
– Regulatory compliance: Improved security and availability allowed Sasol to better align with energy industry regulatory rules.
– Business continuity: Sasol retained Java as a foundational technology, ensuring ongoing support for mission-critical systems.
Azul enabled us to take control of and future-proof our Java environment, reducing costs while improving security and compliance. Migrating more than 150 business-critical applications from Oracle Java to Azul was smooth and well-supported, thanks to Azul’s responsive engineering team and our partners at Optim-G. The migration has given us a more cost-effective and better supported Java environment for innovation and digital transformation.
