Fuchs Petrolub AG and Calumet Specialty Products Partners LP posted gains in third- quarter earnings reports last week. Fuchs reported that increased sales revenue and cost management efforts helped raise its net profit for the first nine months of 2006 by 28 percent compared to the same period last year. Specialty refiner Calumet netted $35.7 million for the quarter after recording a loss in the year-ago period.
Fuchs said Nov. 9 that it had a profit of 71.8 million (U.S. $92 million) for the nine months ended Sept. 30, compared to 56 million (U.S. $71.8 million) for the same period last year. The Mannheim, Germany-based lubricant supplier attributed the increased earnings to an increase in overall sales revenues and sustained, disciplined cost management.
The global lubricants market has also benefited from the positive economic climate and continued growth, the company said in a letter to shareholders. For 2006, we therefore expect an increase in the global demand for lubricants of approximately 1.5 percent.
Sales revenues in Europe, the Americas, and Asia-Pacific and Africa all grew between 10 and 18 percent. Total sales revenues for Fuchs reached 999.5 million (U.S. $1.3 billion) for the nine months ending Sept. 30, up 13 percent from the year-ago period. Fuchs reported data for the nine-month period only, instead of by individual quarter.
Indianapolis-based Calumet said it had net income of $35.7 million for the quarter ending Sept. 30, after recording a loss of $39.4 million for the same period in 2005. Sales revenue grew 22 percent to $445 million. Calumet registered for an initial public offering as a limited partnership in October 2005 to pay off high levels of debt run up by several years of expansion. Its stock began trading in January 2006.
The company said widened margins on specialty products positively impacted the companys third-quarter performance.
During the third quarter of 2006, we maintained our strong performance within the specialty products segment, said Calumet President and Chief Executive Officer Bill Grube. We have made significant capital expenditures related to the Shreveport capacity expansion project, which we still expect to be completed and operational in the third quarter of 2007.
Calumet produced more specialty products – base oils, waxes, solvents and asphalt – in the third quarter compared to the year-ago period. Specialty products sales volume increased 5 percent to 26,380 barrels per day. Base oil output fell 13 percent to 11,241 b/d. Fuel sales rose 5 percent to 24,783 b/d.