We are the first company to render bunkering services in Primorsk. Seahake is the first ship that was recently serviced and loaded with 15 tons of lubricants, the company said in its Oct. 7 press release. Gazpromneft Lubricants is oil major Gazprom Neft’s lubricants arm.

Ship lubrication services are commonly offered in Russian and foreign ports. The company hopes that the launch of its bunkering terminal in Primorsk will give its marine oil access to wider distribution channels in Russia and the world, and boost their sales. Gazpromneft Lubricants started to produce marine oils in 2011.

We supply our products to the largest ports of Russia, the Commonwealth of Independent States and the Baltic, said Alexander Trukhan, company’s general director. Primorsk is a key port in Northwest Russia, and the fact that we have been the first company to initiate the service here is a milestone for development of our maritime lubricant business. The bunkering terminal there will enhance our competitiveness across Russia and the world.

Primorsk port is the final link of Transneft’s Baltic pipeline system and Sever, a pipeline for fuels transported from refineries located in western Russia. It is also an important link for transport of crude oil from the oil fields of the Volga-Ural region and Timan-Pechora region located in the Archangel oblast in the northeast part of European Russia.

Last year Gazpromneft Lubricants started to produce Texaco-branded marine oils. At present it offers over 400 petrochemical products, including lubricants, greases and specialty fluids.

Gazpromneft Lubricants holds 14 percent of the 1.7 million tons per year Russian finished lubricants market. It was founded in 2007 and now operates five manufacturing facilities in Russia, Italy and Serbia with total blending capacity of 450,000 t/y.

Besides Russia, the company’s key markets are Southeast Europe (the Balkans), Ukraine, Belarus, Kazakhstan and Central Asia. In total, its products are marketed in 39 countries.