Base oil production in the United States increased 6% in January to the highest level in six months, according to data released March 31 by the U.S. Energy Information Administration. U.S. output reached 4.9 million barrels in January, compared to 4.6 million barrels in the same month last year. January’s production volume was the highest reported since 5.1 million barrels in July 2022.

Petrobras has licensed technologies from Chevron Lummus Global for an API Group II base oil plant being built as part of Brazil’s Gaslub project, a concrete step in the oft-delayed landmark project. A timeline has not yet been announced for the base oil plant, which will be located in Itaborai, Brazil, and have capacity to make 12,580 barrels per day.

The April issue features a special report on sustainability. Discover how wind assistance may affect the future of marine lubricants as well as how the performance gap between environmentally acceptable lubricants and their conventional counterparts is becoming ever smaller.

Base oil production and base oil imports volumes in Brazil were again higher in February compared to totals in the same month last year, according to the latest government data. The South American country’s base oil production – primarily API Group I – rose 7% to 42,000 metric tons in February, compared to the same month last year, the National Agency of Petroleum, Natural Gas and Biofuels showed in data reported on March 31.