Continuing its search for project financing, Probex Corp. has switched to a cheaper option for engineering and construction of its first used motor oil processing plant in Wellsville, Ohio. The Dallas company announced that it has signed an agreement with Tyler, Texas-based Petrofac and is negotiating to dissolve a previous engineering, procurement and construction alliance with Bechtel Corp. Probex officials said they will continue to work with Bechtel in some areas but that the new contract wi...

American Refining Group Inc. has acquired a dust suppressant product and a private-label lubricant contract, both as a result of Pennzoil-Quaker States closing of a lubricant blending plant. ARG, of Bradford, Pa., purchased formulation rights and U.S. manufacturing and marketing rights for PennzSuppress D, an environmentally safe, emulsified petroleum resin used to suppress dust and stabilize soil. ARG had supplied a key ingredient for the suppressant and agreed to buy the line when Pennzoil-Qua...

Cross Oil Refining and Marketing Inc., of Smackover, Ark., has purchased the assets of Unimark Oil LLC, an automotive and industrial lubricants packaging affiliate located in Kansas City, Kan. Unimark had bought the assets of the former Gard Corp. from the Cohn family in 2000. The latest transaction took effect April 15. Although Unimark will become a division of Cross, it will continue to operate under the Unimark name. According to Cross Oil officials, this acquisition gives it a full line of ...

After 18 months of weak demand and dismal pricing in many segments, the market for alphaolefins is beginning to pick up, says Marilyn Bradshaw, vice president and alphaolefins project leader at the consulting firm Colin A. Houston and Associates in Brewster, N.Y. Sales of polyalphaolefins for synthetic lubricants will pick up, too, she told Lube Report, but growth will be less than half of that seen in the 1990s. “The PAO market saw incredible growth — more than 12 to 15 percent per ...