Petroleum additive results for both the second quarter and first half of this year reflect improved results in most of our major product lines, said Thomas Gottwald, president and CEO of Afton parent NewMarket.

As a whole, Newmarket of Richmond, Va., posted operating profit of $55.3 million, or $4.12 per diluted share, in the second quarter. Thats up 6 percent from net income of $52.3 million, or $3.77 per diluted share, in the year-earlier quarter.

Heritage-Crystal Clean
Heritage-Crystal Cleans oil business, including oil collection and rerefining, posted $30.2 million in sales for the quarter ending June 16, compared to $4.3 million in the year-earlier quarter.

As a whole, Elgin, Ill.-based Heritage-Crystal Clean posted $1.2 million in net income for the second fiscal quarter, on $62.3 million in sales or 7 cents per diluted share. That compared to $719,000 net income on sales of $32 million, or 5 cents diluted share, in 2011s second quarter. The company does not break out net income for its oil business segment.

The oil business figures reflected sales of base oil, intermediate products and byproducts from its rerefinery in Indianapolis. The rerefinery is expected to eventually recycle up to 50 million gallons of used oil and produce up to 30 million gallons of API Group II base oil, or about 2,000 barrels per day.

We were able to feed 10.3 million gallons of used oil into the facility during the second quarter, said Heritage-Crystal Clean founder, president and CEO Joe Chalhoub. We expect to increase the volume of base oil produced in the coming quarters and look forward to the added value derived from the sales of this product.

Quaker Chemical
Lubricant supplier Quaker Chemical posted increases in net income and net sales for 2012s second quarter ending June 3, compared to results in the year-earlier period.

Quaker Chemical of Conshohocken, Pa., reported net income of $10.5 million, up 7 percent from 2011s second quarter. The companys net sales totaled $176.8 million, up 5 percent from $167.8 million in the year-ago quarter.

We are being negatively impacted by a stronger dollar and weaker demand in several geographical areas such as Europe, China, Brazil and India, said Michael Barry, chairman, CEO and president of Quaker. However, these negatives have been offset by additional new business and our recent acquisitions as well as the continuing manufacturing recovery of North America.

SK Lubricants
At SK Lubricants, operating profit for the quarter ending June 30 fell to 87.3 billion won (U.S. $77 million) from 130.6 billion won a year ago, a decrease of 33 percent. Sales, however, rose to 788 billion won from 672.9 billion won, an increase of 17 percent.

SK operates a 31,000 barrel per day API Group II and Group III base oil refineries in Ulsan, South Korea, including a joint venture with JX Nippon Oil. The SK-Pertamina joint venture in Dumai, Indonesia, has a 7,000 b/d Group III capacity.

Company analysts said the second quarter saw improved base oil margins due to lower prices in crude oil, and noted that the decrease in operating profit was the result of inventory-related losses at overseas subsidiaries, despite the higher base oil margin.

They anticipate that base oil prices will show correction, reflecting the lower price of crude oil in the second quarter, and expect base oil demand to remain bullish with the stabilized price of crude oil.

S-Oil
At S-Oils lubricants business segment, operating income for the quarter ending June 30 fell to 124.6 billion won from 178.5 billion won in the year-ago quarter, down 30 percent. Revenue rose slightly to 607.9 billion won from 596.6 billion won, an increase of 2percent.

S-Oils Onsan, South Korea, refinery has 15,000 b/d Group III,20,000 b/d of Group II and 500 b/d of Group I capacity.

S-Oil anticipates a downward correction in the third quarter resulting from a 3,000 b/d expansion of Group II/III capacity at its Onsan facility. Company analysts anticipate a rebound in the fourth quarter as sustainable demand growth will start to absorb the flow from the expanded plant.

Valvoline
Parent company Ashland said its Consumer Markets (Valvoline) segment had operating income of $59 million for the three months ending June 30 (the third quarter of Ashlands fiscal year), up 13.5 percent from $52 million in the year-earlier quarter. Valvolines sales for the current quarter reached $517 million, down 1 percent from the year-ago quarter.

Through July, demand trends are generally holding up well and in line with our expectations, said Ashland Chairman and CEO James OBrien. In a number of areas, raw material costs have begun to move in our favor and could serve as tailwind as we close out our fiscal year.

Covington, Ky.-based Ashland as a whole posted operating income of $263 million, on revenues of $2.1 billion.