Brazil’s production of base oil – mostly API Group I – dropped 15% in February, and imports were down by more than two-thirds, according to data released by a government agency. This resulted in nearly identical production and export volumes for the month, matching a general trend before the COVID-19 pandemic.

Refineria di Kursou, the Curacao government agency that owns the Isla Refinery, received three bids from interested parties to run its long-dormant facility, as the group aims to close its lengthy search for an operator. The agency will evaluate the three proposals, present its findings to the government of Curacao and move forward in selecting a preferred bidder to open negotiations, the agency said in a press release.

A Mexican government agency complained recently that fuel smuggling in the country has more than doubled since 2018 and now accounts for a fifth of the fuel consumed in the country. The agency also said that one of the main avenues for evading import duties on fuels is to label fuels as base oils or to import base oils and to use them as fuel.