Kobil Zambia has acquired from Total Zambia Ltd. a 15 percent share of Lublend Ltd., a lubricants blending plant in Ndola, in the Copperbelt region of Zambia in southern Africa. Terms of the transaction were not disclosed.
Kobil Zambia, which is a fully-owned subsidiary of the Kenol Group, has its head office in Kenya. Kobil said that with the acquisition, it plans to beef up its lubricants blending and supplies within the mineral-rich Zambian region.
The plant will boost Kobil lubricants supplies within the export markets of DR Congo (the Lumumbashi area), Zimbabwe, Malawi and Mozambique, and will provide the Kenol Kobil Group with the capacity to service this region, which has greater potential to be tapped, the company said in its July 1 announcement.
Prior to the acquisition, the Kenol Kobil Group blended all its lubricants supplies for Kenya and the subsidiaries – except Kobil Tanzania – in Mombasa, and then distributed them by truck.
The new acquisition is expected to reduce operational costs, reduce the lead time in making lubricants availability closer to customer operations in the region, the company said. The acquisition will also reduce operational pressure on the Changamwe-based lubricants blending plant, which will now concentrate on the growing Kenyan market and the landlocked countries in the eastern African oil market.
In 2002, Kenol purchased Jovenna Zambia Ltd., which became Kobil Zambia. The Kobil lubricants brand launched in 2003.
Kobil Zambias lubricant products include automotive greases, engine oils, transmission oils, heat transfer oils, industrial gear oils and greases, marine lubricants, metalworking fluids and transformer oils.