Sinopec has finally started up an API Group II base oil unit at its Yanshan Petrochemical refining complex, eight years after the unit was built. The refinery, a wholly owned subsidiary in Beijing, finished building the Group II plant in 2013, but never opened it because China had a glut of Group II oils that was depressing profit margins.

Chinese lubricants blender Qingdao Copton Tech Co. reported increases in net profit and operating income for the first half of this year, compared to the same period in 2020. In the second quarter, sales revenue and volume were up for both its automotive and industrial lube segments.

Sales of new energy vehicles – mostly electric vehicles and hybrids – in China reached a record 321,000 in August, the fourth consecutive month of higher sales since April, according to data released by the China Association of Automobile Manufacturers.