PARIS – The French grease market, about 20,000 tons per year, is subject to heavy regulation but offers real opportunities for innovative producers.
Serge Dal Farra, manager for grease business development at Total Lubrifiants, offered a look at the countrys grease business at the European Lubricating Grease Institute annual general meeting here on May 2. Lithium and lithium complex greases are the major types.
The French grease market accounts for about 10 percent of the EU market, Dal Farra said, and it is linked with key industrial sectors. As the French economy recovers from the 2009 recession, grease demand is rebounding.
The countrys principal grease producers are Total, ExxonMobil, Christol Grease (a division of Axel Christiernsson), Condat and Spirel, according to Herve Grignou, Christol general manager. Shell, a former participant, is no longer producing grease in France.
The principal market segments that consume greases, said Dal Farra, are steel, automotive, cement manufacturing, pellet production (both wood and agri-foods), roller bearings, power generation and railways.
France produced over 15 million tons of steel in 2009, Dal Farra continued. Key players are ArcelorMittal, Ascometal, Iton-Seine, Tata Steel, VM and Celsa France. Continuous casting and hot rolling mills are the biggest grease applications.
The automotive industry is another major grease user. France is the EUs second largest automotive producer, after Germany, producing 2.9 million vehicles in 2010, and the EUs fifth largest vehicle market. Main manufacturers include Renault, Peugeot Citroen, Toyota, Smart and Heuliez.
Grease applications include electric systems, window lifters, belts, seats, doors, locks, the powertrain, steering systems, clutches, starters and more, Dal Farra said. There are numerous grease specifications from the OEMs. Its a technical and challenging market.
REACH and other EU regulatory schemes apply to the grease industry, Dal Farra concluded. To succeed in France, grease producers must have know-how, research and development and innovation. For those who do, the French market has real opportunities.