Volume 15 Issue 10

SSY Base Oil Shipping Report

Adrian Brown is away this week.

Fast Lubes Total $13.7 Billion in Sales

Sales revenues at U.S. fast lube facilities jumped 20 percent from a year ago, according to National Oil & Lube News 2015 Tops in the Industry Ranking. The revenue increase occurred even though the total number of fast lube facilities was virtually unchanged. The magazines survey counts fast lube chains, as well as oil-change plus facilities that provide oil changes and some other types of auto maintenance services. This years report covered 16,907 sites that brought in $13.7 billion. Last ...

White Oils Poised for Moderate Growth

LONDON – The global white oils market will show moderate growth, expanding to 1.6 million metric tons by 2023, consultancy Kline & Co. projected. Current demand is estimated at about 1.5 million tons, Milind Phadke, a director in the consultancys energy practice, told the ICIS Base Oils & Lubricants Conference here last month. Major markets include Asia-Pacific – China, India, South Korea and Taiwan – the United States and Europe – mainly Germany, France, the Unit...

Gazprom to Blend in China, Seek Deal in Libya

Gazpromneft-Lubricants is pushing to enter the markets of China and Libya; for the former it plans to open local production by 2019, in the latter it is trying to land a large supply deal. Until now in China we supplied base oils only, but not anymore, Alexander Trukhan, Gazpromneft-Lubricants general director, told Lube Report. We already signed deals with two local distributors from Hong Kong and Shanghai, and in the coming months we plan to ship finished products there. Both companies pledge ...

Bridgestone Selects Shell to Supply Stores

Bridgestone Retail Operations selected Shell Lubricants Americas as its supplier of automotive lubricants, starting Jan. 1, 2016, the companies announced recently. Bridgestone is not disclosing detailed terms and conditions of the contract. As part of the agreement, Shell will supply Bridgestone retail stores with products such as Quaker State, Pennzoil Platinum and Rotella branded engine oils. The tire and automotive service centers owned and operated by Bridgestone currently use ConocoPhillips...

BASF to Expand Amines Capacity

BASF announced plans March 4 to significantly expand its production capacity for 20 specialty amines at its chemical complex in Ludwigshafen, Germany. The company said it will invest a double-digit million euro amount in expanding its current specialty amines production facilities, gradually bringing them on stream by early 2017. The specialty amines are used for manufacturing of coatings, lubricants, crop protection products and pharmaceuticals. Examples of BASF amines used in lubricants manufa...

Perstorp Ramps up Raw Materials

Perstorp completed an expansion last week at its Stenusgund, Sweden, plant that will enable the Malm-based specialty chemicals company to produce n-valeric acid and the fatty alcohol 2-propylheptanol, which can both be used as intermediates in synthetic lubricant formulations.

Briefly Noted

Phillips 66 Lubricants authorized Al Fahim Groups Central Motors & Equipment to distribute its products throughout the United Arab Emirates. German motor oil and aftermarket additive manufacturer Liqui Moly will conclude its 20 million (U.S. $22 million) investment program this year, completing oil production facilities and expansion of laboratory capacities. Valvoline Instant Oil Change opened new company-owned service centers in Dublin, Ohio, and Cleveland, Tennessee.