The shipping market continues its depressed theme, although a bit more demand has been reported in certain areas. The last two or three weeks (even months in certain trade lanes) have been extremely slow, so a few cargo inquiries have renewed owners hopes that the trend may be changing. However, this seems highly unlikely, since we are approaching the usual slower summer period and the Muslim religious celebrations. Bunker prices may move up again, following crude oil prices, after having drop...

SINGAPORE – Sinopecs API Group II/III base oil capacity, 410,000 metric tons per year today, will soar to 1 million t/y by 2015 to help meet Chinas demand for high quality, eco-friendly lubricants. Sinopec is building a 240,000 t/y Group III plant in Yanshan, a 250,000 t/y Group III plant in Maoming, and an 86,000 t/y Group II unit in Jinan, Sinopec Lubricant Co.s Zhang Ye told the ICIS Asian Base Oils & Lubricants Conference here on June 28. All the projects are expected to stream ...

The U.S. Environmental Protection Agency issued Hydrodec Group a final permit for storage and treatment of used transformer oil contaminated with polychlorinated biphenyl (PCB). Hydrodec also won permission from Mexicos national electricity utility to process its PCB-contaminated oil at another plant in Australia. The company began commercial production at its transformer oil rerefinery in Canton, Ohio, in October 2008. The 22,000 square foot plant can recycle up to 8 million gallons per year. ...

The American Petroleum Institutes Motor Oil Matters initiative is taking wings, with the first group of licensees expected to receive their certification by Dec. 1. Distributors and installers will be able to register for licensing beginning next month and will be able to display a trademarked logo that signals to buyers their participation in the quality monitoring program. MOM has its roots in a 2009 initiative undertaken by Shell Oil, which transferred the program to API last year so that...

In a bid to compete with imports, Russia’s biggest lubricants marketer LLK-International recently made quite a few supply contracts with the country’s largest metallurgical and oil companies. LLK won a supply tender for Magnitogorsk Iron and Steel Works (MMK), one of the country’s largest iron and steel producers, the company said on Monday. LLK-International is the lubricants arm of oil major Lukoil. Under the one-year contract that began June 1, the company will deliver 1,2...