Europe has avoided the dreaded summer lull for yet another week. There is also little sign of it in the U.S., where lack of fixing is more down to a lack of vessels than cargoes. Asia is not doing too badly either. Americas Routes to Europe remain some of the tightest out of the U.S.; owners have recently earned a rate in the $70s per metric ton for 5,000 tons of styrene to Antwerp-Rotterdam-Amsterdam. A fish oil cargo of 8,500 tons from Mississippi to Ghent also paid around $70/t, which is fast...

MOSCOW-Russian oil major Tatneft and subsidiary Nizhnekamskneftekhim announced plans to restart polyalphaolefins production at its plant in Nizhnekamsk, Republic of Tatarstan, which has been idled for five years. The 9,600 tons-per-year base oil plant will produce an array of products including 2 centiStoke, 4 cSt, 6 cSt, and 12 cSt PAO as well as a 20 cSt stock that was not available before 2010. The capacity for the first range of products [2 cSt to 12 cSt PAO] is 3,100 t/y, while the capacity...

Fuchs Petrolub and Valvoline each posted strong earnings for the quarter ending in June, while profits were down for Afton Chemical and Quaker Chemical, compared to year-earlier results. Sales for Chemturas petroleum additives segment and rerefiner Heritage-Crystal Cleans oil business segment were down for the quarter. Afton Chemical NewMarket Corp.s Afton Chemical petroleum additives segment posted an operating profit of $94.1 million for the second quarter, a 13.8 percent decline from a record...

Fuchs Petrolub acquired Sweden-based Statoil Fuel & Retail Lubricants AB for an undisclosed amount. SFR Lubricants is part of Couche-Tard Luxembourg, a wholly owned indirect subsidiary of Alimentation Couche-Tard Inc. Subject to approvals and conditions, the deal is expected to be completed before the end of 2015, Alimentation Couche-Tard said in a news release. The company said SFR Lubricants is one of the leading lubricant suppliers in Scandinavia and the Baltics, and in recent years has h...

Quaker Chemical Corp. acquired Spanish industrial lubes and grease company Verkol last week for $32.4 million. Quaker, of Conshohocken, Pa., said that the specialty grease and lubricants manufacturer and marketer was particularly appealing because of its strength in the steel industry. Verkol – based in the town of Bera, in Northern Spains Navarre region – said the acquisition is a good fit for both companies as it will help each add new products, customers and expertise. Verkol is a...