Brazil’s base oil production plummeted 29%, while its base oil import volumes surged 55% in July, the National Agency of Petroleum, Natural Gas and Biofuels reported.
Base oil production in the South American country fell to 38,000 metric tons in August – the lowest since 29,000 tons in March – compared to 53,000 tons in the same month last year.
Year to date through August, Brazil’s base oil production rose 5% to 344,000 tons.
Imported base oil volumes jumped to 90,000 tons in August, compared to 58,000 tons. The August figure is the highest base oil import volume since October 2022, when it reached 97,000 tons.
For the first seven months of this year, Brazil’s base oil imports increased 5% to 510,000 tons.
Most of the base oil that Brazil imports – primarily Group II – comes from producers in the United States.
Brazil exported about 7,000 tons of base oil in August, a 30% drop from 10,000 tons.