Volume 1 Issue 4

Probex Obtains Interim Financing (Again)

Would-be used oil processor Probex announced that it has received $4.1 million in interim financing and remains confident of its ability to obtain approximately $100 million for construction of its first plant. The Dallas company declined however, to predict when it will secure project financing, acknowledging that it has hurt its own image by failing to meet earlier projections. “We’ve stopped making predictions,” Vice President of Investor Relations Les Van Dyke said during a...

Fire Slows Production at Cit-Con Plant

A Sept. 22 fire at Citgo’s refinery in Lake Charles, La., has hampered production of base oil at the adjacent Cit-Con facility. The blaze began at 8:30 a.m. at the Citgo plant’s Unicracker and lasted until the following afternoon. One employee and a contractor were injured in the incident and were treated at area hospitals. In addition, a fire fighter was taken to a hospital for observation after suffering chest pains. The refinery is operated by Citgo Petroleum Corp. The base oil pl...

GF-3 Wobbly Out of the Gate

If lubricant producers hoped for more comfortable margins for the newest generation of passenger car motor oils, they may be disappointed by early indications. Led by major oil companies, lubricant producers began over the summer to introduce motor oils that meet the new ILSAC GF-3 specification, needed for model year 2002 passenger cars. Automakers developed the standard and the American Petroleum Institute is licensing oils that meet it under a new category, SL. As expected, prices for the new...