The sustainability movement demands that industry begin looking for replacements to mineral base oils, a Swedish academic said at a conference last month. He added that switching will probably require sacrifices in performance and cost – and be great job security for tribologists.

A new nation is king of the hill in terms of base oil capacity, after China surpassed the United States in 2021 following a decade-long surge in investment. Two more expansions and an operational change at a third plant last year brought annual nameplate capacity in China to 14 million metric tons, slightly ahead of the United States, according to Lubes’n’Greases’ Base Stock Plant Data.

Gazpromneft-Lubricants added more foreign destinations and established several partnerships with foreign manufacturers who blend its oils abroad, steps that increased its overseas finished lubricant sales last year to 200,000 tons, or almost two-thirds of its total volume. The company reported selling 330,000 metric tons of finished lubes in 2021, 8% more than in 2020.

A 2020 emissions regulation that caused ship operators to transition to cylinder oils with lower base numbers had less impact on 4-stroke trunk piston engines, but it still brought about changes that apply to trunk piston engine oils, speakers said at an online webinar last month.