Volume 12 Issue 5

SSY Base Oil Shipping Report

There has been little change in the U.S. market this week, and in Asia business has yet to resume to normal operations after the holidays. European coastal markets are busy, but less so on long-haul routes. U.S Gulf of Mexico No definitive trend has emerged in the U.S. Gulf of Mexico. The only trade lane to undergo a freight revision has been U.S. Gulf to the east coast of South America where numbers dipped into the low $70s per metric ton for 5,000 ton parcels from Houston to Santos for the f...

Indianapolis Rerefinery Starts Up

Heritage Crystal Clean on Jan. 26 announced startup of the second phase of its rerefinery in Indianapolis and its plants first production of API Group II base oil. Startup was originally expected in mid-2012, but the company was able to complete construction by the end of 2011. The rerefinery is expected to eventually recycle up to 50 million gallons of used oil and produce up to 30 million gallons of base oil, or about 2,000 barrels per day. While plant construction was ongoing, we were also ...

NexLube Takes Next Step

NexLube Tampa expects its rerefinery and blending plant project in Florida, scheduled to open in 2013, will produce white oils as well as three API Group II base oil cuts. The Tampa Port Authority and the Hillsboro County, Fla., government recently approved a construction permit for NexLube Tampas rerefinery and blending plant project in Tampa, Fla. In June 2010, the port authority approved a 20-year lease option agreement with NexLube for the 12-acre project. The total cost is now estimated at...

More Base Oil for Pakistan

National Refinery Ltd. expects to start up a refinery expansion in Pakistan by 2016 that will produce 4,500 barrels day of base oil and 40,000 barrels of diesel fuel, according to a Jan. 26 Honeywell UOP announcement. NRL operates three refineries and a petrochemicals plant in Karangi Industrial Park in Karachi, Pakistan, including the only lube production facility in the region, and processes almost 2.5 million tons of crude per year. Its base oil plant there currently has 3,500 b/d of API Gro...

Eastman Selects Solutia

Eastman Chemical Company will acquire Solutia Inc., which makes hydraulic fluids, for $4.7 billion, both companies announced Jan. 27. The acquisition of Solutia is a significant step in our growth strategy and one that will broaden our reach into emerging geographies, particularly Asia Pacific, said Jim Rogers, chairman and chief executive officer of Eastman. The company said it expects to see a 10 percent annual growth rate in the Asia Pacific region over the next three years. Eastman produce...

Laugfs Plans Sri Lanka Blending Plant

Laugfs Lubricants Ltd. of Sri Lanka plans to set up its own blending plant in Hambantota port, on the southeastern end of the island nation. The announcement came during a recent ceremony held to honor Laugfs lubricant distributors and dealers for their performance in 2011. No details on plant capacity and construction timeline were available. Once we obtain the license to set up the blending plant, we can provide more information, CEO Nalaka Madugalle told Lube Report. In a statement, Madugal...