The world’s 12 largest base oil refineries account for more than a quarter of the world’s base oil capacity. With the exception of Shell’s gas-to-liquids joint venture with Qatar Petroleum and ExxonMobil’s Rotterdam plant, all of these powerhouse plants are located in either the United States or Asia, and about three-quarters of their capacity is API Group II.
The majority of the base oil capacity taken offline over the past decade has been API Group I. While the grade still has a firm place in the finished lubricants market, it is slowly being pushed out by Group II base stocks, which can often be less expensive. This trend continued in 2023 when Eneos closed a Group I plant in Japan and Sapref shuttered a Group I facility in South Africa.
World’s Largest Base Oil Refineries
| 2023 RANK | COMPANY | LOCATION | CAPACITY (B/D) | 2022 RANK | 2021 RANK | 2020 RANK | 2019 RANK | 2018 RANK | 2017 RANK | 2016 RANK | 2015 RANK | 2014 RANK | 2013 RANK | 2012 RANK | 2011 RANK | 2010 RANK | 2009 RANK | 2008 RANK | 2007 RANK | 2006 RANK | 2005 RANK |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | S-Oil | South Korea - Onsan | 42800 | 1 | 1 | 1 | 1 | 1 | 1 | 1 | 1 | 1 | 3 | 2 | 2 | 2 | 2 | 2 | 2 | 2 | 2 |
| 2 | Motiva | U.S. - Port Arthur, Texas | 40300 | 2 | 2 | 2 | 2 | 2 | 2 | 2 | 2 | 2 | 1 | 1 | 1 | 1 | 1 | 1 | 1 | 1 | 1 |
| 3 | ExxonMobil | Singapore - Jurong | 31900 | 3 | 3 | 3 | 4 | 4 | 4 | 4 | 4 | Tie - 6 | 6 | 5 | 4 | 3 | 3 | 7 | 7 | 7 | 6 |
| 4 | Qinghe Chemical Technology | China - Zibo | 28300 | 4 | 21 | N/A | N/A | N/A | N/A | N/A | N/A | N/A | N/A | N/A | N/A | N/A | N/A | N/A | N/A | N/A | N/A |
| Tie - 5 | Shandong Qingyuan | China - Zibo | 28000 | Tie - 5 | Tie - 4 | Tie - 4 | Tie - 6 | Tie - 24 | Tie - 39 | N/A | N/A | N/A | N/A | N/A | N/A | N/A | N/A | N/A | N/A | N/A | N/A |
| Tie - 5 | Shell-Qatar Petroleum | Qatar - Ras Laffan | 28000 | Tie - 5 | Tie - 4 | Tie - 4 | Tie - 6 | 6 | 6 | 6 | 6 | 4 | 4 | 3 | N/A | N/A | N/A | N/A | N/A | N/A | N/A |
| 6 | ExxonMobil | U.S. - Baytown, Texas | 27000 | 6 | 5 | 5 | 5 | 5 | 5 | 5 | 5 | 9 | 9 | 8 | 7 | 6 | 5 | 4 | 4 | 4 | 4 |
| Tie - 7 | GS-Caltex | South Korea - Yeosu | 26000 | Tie - 7 | Tie - 6 | Tie - 6 | 7 | 7 | 7 | 7 | 7 | 5 | 5 | 4 | 3 | 4 | 8 | Tie - 10 | N/A | N/A | N/A |
| Tie - 7 | SK Enmove | South Korea - Ulsan | 26000 | Tie - 7 | Tie - 6 | Tie - 6 | 3 | 3 | 3 | 3 | 3 | 3 | 2 | 9 | 8 | 7 | 6 | Tie - 5 | Tie - 5 | 5 | 8 |
| Tie - 8 | Chevron | U.S. - Pascagoula, Miss. | 25000 | Tie - 8 | Tie - 7 | Tie - 7 | Tie - 8 | Tie - 8 | Tie - 8 | Tie - 9 | 8 | Tie - 6 | N/A | N/A | N/A | N/A | N/A | N/A | N/A | N/A | N/A |
| Tie - 8 | Ergon | U.S. - Vicksburg, Miss. | 25000 | Tie - 8 | Tie - 7 | Tie - 7 | Tie - 8 | Tie - 8 | Tie - 8 | Tie - 9 | 10 | 8 | 8 | 7 | 6 | 9 | Tie - 10 | Tie - 14 | 17 | 18 | 18 |
| Tie - 8 | Hyundai OilBank-Shell | South Korea - Seosan-si | 25000 | Tie - 8 | Tie - 7 | 10 | 11 | Tie - 19 | Tie -17 | Tie - 18 | Tie - 18 | N/A | N/A | N/A | N/A | N/A | N/A | N/A | N/A | N/A | N/A |
| 9 | Handi Sunshine Petrochemical | China - Hainan | 24100 | 19 | 49 | 49 | Tie - 52 | Tie - 49 | Tie - 47 | Tie - 48 | Tie - 48 | Tie - 45 | Tie - 46 | N/A | N/A | N/A | N/A | N/A | N/A | N/A | N/A |
| 10 | ExxonMobil | Netherlands - Rotterdam | 24000 | 9 | 8 | 11 | 12 | N/A | N/A | N/A | N/A | N/A | N/A | N/A | N/A | N/A | N/A | N/A | N/A | N/A | N/A |
| 401400 |
Plant or Capacity Closings
| COMPANY | LOCATION | SIZE (B/D) | ||
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2023 | ||||
| Eneos | Japan - Wakayama | 6,900 b/d Group I | ||
| Sapref | South Africa - Durban | 3,300 b/d Group I | ||
| 2022 | ||||
| Eneos | Japan - Negishi | 4,400 b/d Group I | ||
| 2021 | ||||
| Galp | Portugal - Matosinhos | 2,900 b/d Group I | ||
| 2020 | ||||
| SK Enmove | South Korea - Ulsan | 14,000 Group II | ||
| Total | France - Gonfreville | 5,600 Groups I/III | ||
| 2019 | ||||
| LyondellBasell | U.S. - Houston, Texas | 4,600 Group II/Naphthenic | ||
| 2018 | ||||
| Imperial Oil | Canada - Strathcona | 2,400 Group I | ||
| 2017 | ||||
| Avista Oil* | Denmark (temporary; rebuilt) | 800 Group I | ||
| 2016 | ||||
| ExxonMobil | U.S. - Beaumont, Texas | 10,000 Group I | ||
| Gunvor (Kuwait Petroleum) | Netherlands - Rotterdam | 4,650 Group I | ||
| Shell | Netherlands - Pernis | 7,100 Group I | ||
| *Rerefinery | ||||
While a fair amount of base oil production capacity has been eliminated over the past few years, new plants have opened their doors. Is there a trend to be observed amongst the new plants that have come online since 2016? Absolutely. Of the 28 new plants, 19 are located in China. This can be attributed in large part to China’s stated goal of decreasing reliance on imports.
Base Oil Plant Openings
| COMPANY | LOCATION | SIZE (B/D) | ||
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2023 | ||||
| Handi Sunshine Petrochemical | China - Hainan | 10,100 Groups II/III | ||
| Hebei Feitian Petrochemical | China - Xinji | 5,000 Group II | ||
| 2022 | ||||
| Handi Sunshine Petrochemical | China - Hainan | 8,000 Groups II/III | ||
| Qinghe Chemical Technology | China - Zibo | 16,000 Group II | ||
| 2021 | ||||
| Hitech Oils and Greases* | Egypt - Ain Sokhna | 600 Group I | ||
| SK-Repsol | Spain - Cartagena | 4,000 Groups II/III | ||
| 2020 | ||||
| PetroChina | China - Karamay | 7,100 Naphthenic | ||
| Qinghe Chemical Technology | China - Zibo | 12,300 Group III | ||
| Tayras* | Turkey - Osmaneli | 900 Group II | ||
| 2019 | ||||
| ExxonMobil | Netherlands - Rotterdam | 19,000 Group II | ||
| Hebei Feitian Petrochemical | China - Xinji | 2,000 Group II | ||
| Junheng Industrial Group Biotechnology | China - Henan | 6,200 Group III | ||
| Kaitai Petrochemical | China - Zibo 3,000 | Group II | ||
| Shandong Qingyuan | China - Zibo | 16,000 Group II | ||
| Shida Changsheng Chemical | China - Weifang | 6,000 Group II | ||
| 2018 | ||||
| Hengli Petrochemical | China - Dalian | 11,000 Groups II/III | ||
| Hyundai OilBank-Shell | South Korea - Seosan-si | 7,000 Group II | ||
| Lu’an Group | China - Changzhi | 6,200 Group III | ||
| 2017 | ||||
| CNOOC | China - Taizhou | 12,000 Groups II/III, Naphthenic | ||
| Maoming Haihe Chemical | China - Maoming | 3,800 Group I | ||
| Panjin Northern Asphalt | China - Panjin | 5,800 Naphthenic | ||
| 2016 | ||||
| Adnoc | UAE - Ruwais | 12,300 Groups II/III | ||
| Ergon | U.S. - Vicksburg, Miss. | 3,000 Group I | ||
| Luberef | Saudi Arabia - Yanbu | 12,300 Group II | ||
| Panjin Northern Asphalt | China - Panjin | 3,800 Naphthenic | ||
| Sinopec | China - Maoming | 6,200 Groups II/III | ||
| Uz-Prista Recycling* | Uzbekistan - Tashkent | 600 Group I | ||
| Zhonghai Jinxiang | China - Luzhou | 2,800 Naphthenic | ||
| *Rerefinery | ||||