Heritage-Crystal Clean has constructed the front end of its API Group II 2,000 barrels per day rerefinery in Indianapolis, and begun operational testing. It remains on schedule to stream base oil near the end of 2011, the company recently stated. The testing phase for the front end of our rerefinery has started off well, Greg Ray, the companys chief financial officer and vice president of business management, said during a quarterly earnings conference call last month. We hope to begin producin...

Amyris commissioned its first U.S. plant to produce a renewable hydrocarbon, made from sugarcane feedstock, that can be finished to create base oils and lubricants. Located at a Decatur, Ill. facility owned by Tate & Lyle Ingredients America, the plant will produce Biofene, Amyriss renewable farnesene hydrocarbon. Amyris now has production agreements to make Biofene in Brazil, Europe and the United States. It has also established finishing capabilities with Glycotech in North Carolina. O...

A licensing alliance brings together ExxonMobil Research & Engineerings technology used to produce base oils and Honeywell UOPs hydroprocessing solutions that produce high-quality feedstocks for lubricant production. The integration of EMRE and UOP technologies allows refiners to achieve impressive yields of dewaxed fuels and lube products while optimizing their operating and capital costs, said Pete Piotrowski, vice president and general manager of process technology and equipment for Hon...

The U.S. Department of Energy awarded more than $175 million for advanced vehicle research and development, including $4.7 million for four projects related to lubricants. The Massachusetts Institute of Technology in Cambridge, Mass., received $1.5 million for a project to investigate the use of novel lubricant formulations that target differing lubricant requirements of the major engine subsystems, such as valve train vs. bearings. Ford Motor Co. of Dearborn, Mich., got $1.2 million to aid it...

A power steering fluid leak led General Motors to recall 10,344 model year 2012 Chevrolet Impalas, beginning on or before Aug. 12. The vehicles were manufactured in 2011 from April 19 through July 29. The upper power steering hose on some of these vehicles may have been misrouted so that it can come in close proximity to and/or contact the catalytic converter, GM stated in its recent recall bulletin. With the engine on, heat from the catalytic converter may melt the power steering hose. If thi...

Apart from routes to the Far East, trade lanes out of the U.S. Gulf have been flat. Europe faltered this week, while Asia continues to see growth in certain sectors. U.S. Gulf of Mexico Those owners who judged it prudent to hold onto their last remaining open tanks on the U.S. Gulf-to-Far East service have been vindicated and are able to cash in on the shortage of space for August loading. Rates are accelerating upwards as charterers vie for the last bits of space. Owners are asking for numbe...

Hot off the press, the Lubricants Industry Factbook from LubesnGreases is full of facts and trends that define the global lubricants industry, with data on lubes and greases, base oils, additives, licensing and more. Click here to order. LNGs annual Factbook profiles the U.S. and global lubricants industry to answer the questions our editors are asked most often, like How much lubricants and greases are sold in the U.S.? Whats the difference among API base oil groups? How often do drivers reall...