Base oil production in Brazil fell 4% in 2025 but was still the country’s second-highest total since the COVID-19 pandemic, which started in 2020.
Domestic refineries produced 532,000 metric tons of virgin base oil last year, down from 555,000 tons in 2024, which was the highest level of production since 2019. Last year’s output was hampered by several weeks of interrupted operations in October at the Duque de Caxais refinery of state-owned oil company Petrobras.
The base oil plant at the Duque de Caxais refinery, referred to locally as Reduc, is by far the largest in the country.
Base oil production in Brazil has fluctuated significantly the past several years. From 522,000 tons in 2019, output fell to 426,000 tons in 2020, rebounded to 523,000 tons in 2021, dropped to 494,000 tons in 2022 and declined again to 440,000 tons in 2023.
The country imports more than half of the base oil that it consumes, mostly API Group II base oils from the United States. In 2025 Brazil imported 931,000 tons of base oil, down 5% from 979,000 tons the previous year.
Brazil’s domestic base oil capacity could increase in the foreseeable future. Petrobras is developing a Group II plant in Itaborai. The project has long been delayed but is not scheduled to open by 2029.
Waste oil reprocessor Lwart plans to complete an expansion of its Lencois rerefinery this year.