A Federal judge in Michigan dismissed Z Technologies antitrust lawsuit against Lubrizol last week, concluding the four-year statute of limitations applicable to each of the complaints four counts expired before Z Tech filed its lawsuit in May 2012. Z Tech had filed the lawsuit in the U.S. District Court of the Eastern District of Michigan in Detroit, alleging Lubrizols acquisition of Lockharts wax oxidate business in February 2007 resulted in a monopoly and lessened competition, leading to incr...

Shamrock Shipping and Trading has warned that any deals concluded by a former employee and his current employer, Feedco, may be challenged in court. In response, Feedco denies any breach of contract between the employee and Shamrock, calling Shamrocks charges false accusations. In a Jan. 30 letter to Shamrock clients and associates, Shamrocks attorneys alleged that a former employee, Alexey Kiseliov, seriously breached his contractual obligations. Shamrocks lawyers continued, Please be warned ...

French authorities gave Lubrizol the go-ahead last week to resume operations at its Rouen, France, additive plant, following a late January release of harmless but foul-smelling gas that drifted as far as London. Last Wednesday, Delphine Batho, French minister of ecology, sustainable development and energy, announced the official end of the Jan. 21 incident. According to Lubrizol, the problem began with decomposition of a batch of zinc dialkyldithiophosphate, known as ZDDP or ZDP, which release...

PT Pertamina is collaborating with Sharjah National Lube Oil Co. (Sharlu) to manufacture and market Meditran Series marine lubricants in the United Arab Emirates from Sharlus blending plant in Fujairah. According to Pertaminas Feb. 3 announcement, the target market consists of oil transport ships sailing from the United Arab Emirates. Pertamina is Indonesias national oil company. The production and marketing of Pertamina lubricants in Fujairah is a solution meeting the needs of marine customer...

Gulf Oil Corp. Ltd. may demerge its lubricants business into a separately listed company, according to a Feb. 8 filing with the National Stock Exchange of India. In the Feb. 8 filing, Gulf said its board discussed the matter at a Feb. 7 meeting as part of possible restructuring of various businesses, and that it authorized the committee of directors to consider the matter in detail and make necessary recommendations. The possible demerger is just a technicality that would have no impact on the...

Milacron will acquire 100 percent of hot-runner manufacturer Mold-Masters’s shares for $975 million. Milacrons Cimcool industrial fluids segment supplies metalworking and industrial fluids. Hot-runner systems are used in molds for thermoplastics. Subject to closing conditions, the transaction is expected to close in the first half of 2013. This transaction is a major step in Milacrons strategic growth plan, said Tim Walsh, a managing director of CCMP Capital Advisors, the private equit...

Finding vessel space in February has become an issue on a number of long-haul routes from the U.S. Gulf and Europe, and could lead to an attempt to increase freight rates. Asia was busy before the holidays and will certainly be active again afterwards. U.S. Gulf of Mexico The market out of the U.S. Gulf has become quite interesting. Ostensibly, nothing much has changed, outwardly at least. However, what has become apparent is that the scheduled carriers, the ships that routinely load from the U...