The rise of electric vehicles has a few lubricant companies looking to branch into aspects of EVs that have nothing to do with lubes. Now a Chinese supplier of EV batteries has ventured in the lubricant market. Tianneng Group announced late last month that it had shipped the first batch of products from its new lube blending plant in the eastern coastal city of Qingdao.

UMW Holdings Bhd. reported slightly lower sales of lubricants and related products for the nine months ending Sept. 30, compared to the same period last year. The company expressed optimism that sales will gradually improve as the automotive industry recovers from the economic impacts of national lockdowns imposed in response to the COVID-19 pandemic.

France-based Arkema announced on Monday a 50% increase in global capacity for its Oleris castor oil derivatives, which are used in synthetic lubricants and corrosion inhibition, among other applications. The new capacity will be included in a previously announced factory for plant-based chemicals, scheduled to open on Singapore’s Jurong Island in mid-2022.