ExxonMobil has lifted allocations on non-PAO formulated lubricants, including all mineral-based lubricants, a company spokeswoman said yesterday. A sales allocation effective Oct. 1 on a variety of Mobil 1 synthetic lubricants remains in place.
Our Beaumont lube plant is now receiving additional supply of conventional basestocks – basestocks not containing polyalphaolefins – at a rate that enabled it to lift, effective October 28, the 100 percent sales control announced on September 26 to its customers, ExxonMobil spokeswoman Prem Nair told Lube Report.
Nair said the company has begun alternative projects to supply customers of its synthetic lubricants business, which is coping with the continued shutdown of the Beaumont, Texas, ExxonMobil Chemical polyalphaolefin (PAO) plant. It is expected to resume operations at years end.
We have reformulated numerous synthetic products covering more than 35 reformulations and introduced new synthetic products – such as the Mobil SHC 600 Star series, Nair continued. We have also started the purchase of available third party PAO barrels, consolidated limited industrial synthetic inventories into one warehouse to extend supply, and shifted production of some automotive synthetics to alternative overseas facilities.
She said it is considering more robust short, medium and long term options to improve supply reliability.
ExxonMobil has teams working to repair or replace damaged equipment at the Beaumont chemical plant, which has remained shut down due to flooding damage from the storm surge associated with Hurricane Ike in September. Restart planning has commenced to expedite a return to normal operations, Nair added.