Earlier this month we held talks with some representatives of the Afghan security forces, including the Ministry of Internal Affairs, with whom we signed a written statement for engine oils supply, the companys spokesperson Nikolay Manvelov told Lube Report last week. Afghan company Zamindar will tentatively distribute lubricants to the ministrys vehicle fleet.

LLK will supply engine oil for the Russian-made aircraft and land vehicles of Afghanistans military forces. The written agreement will be signed as soon as the Afghan defense minister endorses the deal, Russian news agency RIA Novosti reported last week. In addition, Afghanistans Transportation Ministry is interested in lubricants supply for its vehicle fleet, the agency said.

Afsotr, a Russian-Afghan joint venture and one of Afghanistans largest logistics companies, has also made a deal with LLK. The Russian company will supply lubricants for Afsotrs fleet of over 750 heavy duty tracks and light commercial vehicles, RIA Novosti reported.

LLK is also holding talks with a couple of Afghan companies and banks about establishing a dealership network for its finished lubricant products, Manvelov told Lube Report. Several Russian oil majors expressed their interest to supply the Afghan market with petrochemical products during the recent visit of Afghan president Hamid Karzai to the Kremlin.

Moscow-based LLK International is one of the regions biggest lubricants producers and suppliers. Last year the company produced 1.4 million tons of base oils and finished lubricants, up 9 percent compared to its 2008 record year, LLK said. It has three base oil refineries with nearly 1.5 million tons per year total capacity and a number of blending facilities in Russia. It also operates several blending plants and distribution centers in Central and Southeastern Europe and Central Asia.