The lubricants industry is the best kept secret in the battle to stop climate change and achieve sustainability goals, including improved fuel economy and reduced emissions, a speaker told an industry conference recently.

Saudi investment firm Dussur has agreed to buy a minority stake in Italmatch Chemicals, a growing Italy-based company that supplies esters and chemical additives for a range of lubricants. The companies did not disclose how much Dussur has agreed to pay, but Bain said in a Dec. 9 news release that the Saudi firm “is expected” to own less than 20% of Italmatch after seeding an additional investment of €100 million to Italmatch.

The December issue explores what it will take for the lubricants industry to sustain the various engine oil approval systems and delves into the ways that energy-efficient hydraulic fluids can help to lower costs for equipment owners. Plus, discover how base oil production in the United States during the first half of 2022 differed from previous years.

A pilot plant in France to purify polyether-perfluorinated lubricants contaminated by uranium is among the projects earmarked for funding by the French government as part of a search for innovations in the management of radioactive waste. The government initiative aims to support development of safer nuclear energy.