Independent refiner Calumet Specialty Products Partners LP said it increased profits during the second quarter, while South Korean refiner S-Oil reported an upswing in profits for its lubricants segment during the first half of 2007. Calumet reported net income of $37.4 million for the quarter ending June 30, up 59 percent from $23.5 million in the same period in 2006. Sales revenue for the quarter declined 2 percent to $421.7 million. The Indianapolis-based company said the partnerships perform...

Rohmax Oil Additives, Dow Chemical and Chattem recently announced price increases for certain chemical products. Rohmaxs products are lubricant additives and synthetic base fluids. Dows products are oxygenated solvents. Chattems Hamposyl/Chattosyl brand specialty surfactants are used in lubricants and greases. Rohmax Oil Additives on Thursday announced it would raise prices for its Viscoplex brand lubricant additives and Viscobase brand synthetic base fluids in Europe and Asia Pacific by at leas...

Demand for API Group III base oils, high quality refined mineral oil that can be marketed as synthetic, is growing at 10 percent per year, but will next years projected oversupply lead to severe competition and depressed prices? Or will production capacity find a balance with growing commercial demand, asked leading Group III refiner SK Energy at a recent industry forum. There is a big shift in interest recently to Group III, J. Rock Lee, marketing manager on the base oil team at Seoul, Korea-ba...

The European Commission recently granted its clearance to Italian refiner Enis acquisition of ExxonMobils lubricant businesses in Hungary, the Czeck Republic and Slovakia. The acquisition was part of a deal that included ExxonMobils fuel retail operations in those countries. The companies first informed the commission of their agreement in June. On July 24, the commission announced its decision not to contest the transaction, concluding that it would not impede effective competition in lubrican...

Bel-Ray Co. Inc. recently announced that Socko Teknik will serve as its exclusive distributor of general industrial and No-Tox food grade lubricant products in the Danish industrial and food processing markets. Socko Teknik has served as a distributor in the oil and chemical business since 1989. It also sells metalworking fluids and chemicals such as rust preventive agents, stainless steel cleaners and industrial sediment cleaners. Ian Bowmer, European sales manager for the industrial division o...