Calumet Specialty Products Partners reported a $19 million operating loss for the quarter ending Sept. 30, down from $98.8 million operating income a year earlier. Sales reached $1.5 billion, up 25 percent from $1.2 billion in 2012s third quarter.

A significant decline in both fuel and specialty products margins, compared to the prior year period, adversely impacted the partnerships third quarter performance. Sales prices for gasoline, lubricating oils and asphalt did not keep pace with a rapid escalation in the price of crude oil during the third quarter 2013, resulting in a year over year decline in gross profit, the company stated in its earnings release.

Second quarter specialty products sales volumes totaled 41,157 barrels per day, down 2.3 percent from a year earlier. Calumets third quarter specialty products segment sales volumes included 13,093 barrels per day of lubricating oils, 8,156 b/d of solvents, 1,426 b/d of waxes and 2,344 b/d packaged and synthetic specialty products.

In our specialty products segment, we recently received confirmation from Wal-Mart Stores that they will begin selling our Royal Purple line of automotive synthetic lubricants and performance products during the first quarter of 2014, Vice Chairman and CEO Bill Grube said in the companys earnings news release. We expect to sell a wide range of Royal Purple products in more than 2,400 Wal-Mart locations. While our packaged and synthetic specialty product sales currently represent a relatively small percentage of our overall specialty products segment sales mix, we have continued to see outstanding growth in this product line, and will look to expand this area of our business during 2014.