Shell plc has confirmed that train two at the Pearl GTL facility in Ras Laffan, Qatar sustained damage following attacks on March 18, while train one remains intact. Initial assessments suggest that repairs to the affected train could take about one year, Shell revealed on its website. Pearl GTL, a joint venture with QatarEnergy, is a two-train facility capable of producing around 140,000 barrels of oil equivalent per day using 1,600 million standard cubic feet per day of feed gas from QatarEne...

GM, the largest automaker in the United States by sales, has rejected the Independent Lubricant Manufacturers Association’s request for relief on Dexos licensing for its members. ILMA made the request last week in response to severe supply constraints caused by ongoing conflict in the Middle East. Iran has closed off the vital Strait of Hormuz and attacked base oil capacity in retaliation for U.S. and Israeli strikes on its regime. The 118-year-old car company said that, despite ongoing disrup...

China’s lubricants industry has faced significant headwinds since 2020, squeezed by a cooling economy, trade tensions with the U.S. and now the conflict in the Middle East. But according to industry consulting firm Kline & Co., industrial oil suppliers are likely to see business growth as China has shifted focus to new economy drivers. Speaking at the annual China International Lubrication Industry Conference on March 24 in Shanghai, Shanghai-based Kline analyst Li Haoyang named AI, energy...