Shell remained the leader in global market share of finished lubricants in 2008, with a 13 percent share, edging out second place ExxonMobil, reported consultancy Kline and Co., which estimated the global market at 38.2 million metric tons in 2008, down 2.6 percent from 2007. Klines study, Competitive Intelligence for the Global Lubricants Industry, 2008-2018, found that Shell remained ahead of its biggest competitor, ExxonMobil, which had an estimated 11 percent market share in 2008. Rounding ...

Neste Oil has shut down its 60,000 metric tons per year polyalphaolefins plant in Beringen, Belgium for four weeks in July-August, the refiner announced Thursday in its second quarter interim report. The PAO plant is temporarily closed for a four week period as PAO demand has still not fully recovered from the demand drop experienced in late 2008, Virpi Saranpaa, vice president of base oils for Neste Oil, told Lube Report. The temporary shutdown started two weeks ago and impacts more than 15 pe...

Lubrizols additives segment and New Markets Afton Chemical additives subsidiary each saw an improvement in operating profit for the quarter ending June 30, compared to the year-ago quarter. Lubrizol Additives Lubrizols additives segment reported operating income of $221.2 million for the second quarter, up 81 percent from $122.2 million in the year-earlier period. The Wickliffe, Ohio-based companys additives segment reported $802.8 million in revenue in the second quarter, down 15 percent from ...

South Korean base oil refiner S-Oils lubricants division reported declines in operating profit and revenue for the quarter ending June 30, compared to 2008s second quarter. S-Oils lubricants division reported a 66.7 percent decline in operating income in the second quarter, to 16 billion South Korean won (U.S. $13.1 million), compared to 48 billion won ($39.2 million) in the year-earlier period. Revenue for S-Oils lubricants segment was down 35.5 percent to 258.9 billion won ($211.6 million) i...

Croda International said it plans to cease production at its Wilton, U.K., site at the end of January 2010 because of Dows plans to close a nearby ethylene oxide and glycol plant that same month. Dow said the Wilton plant is the only chemical site in the United Kingdom that produces ethylene oxide, a core raw material for the majority of products manufactured at Crodas Wilton plant. We are still in the very early stages of implementation of the planned closure and do not expect to cease manuf...

Fuchs Lubricants has acquired Dylon Industries, which manufactures forging lubricants and other metalworking lubricants. Terms of the transaction, announced Monday, were not disclosed. Founded in 1967, Cleveland-based Dylon said it focuses on products that meet the severe operating conditions found in the metal melting and metal forming industries. The company makes its forging lubricants, with and without graphite, for the ferrous and non-ferrous markets. Dylon also makes specialty greases fo...

British consultancy Ricardo plc has proposed a consortium of oil, lubricant additive and automotive companies to evaluate and research the lubricant challenges posed by future fuel-efficient engines. The demand to reduce carbon dioxide emissions by developing vehicles that consume significantly less fuel will require innovations in lubricants, the company said. Further significant improvements in diesel and gasoline engine fuel economy will require an integrated approach to investigate and rese...

The peak holiday season in Europe has induced a kind of lethargy that has afflicted some, but not all, European coastal trades. The market in the Americas is mixed too. Some routes are doing well with plenty of activity, while others languish. The pace of business in Asia continues to accelerate, with higher freights being seen on certain routes. U.S. Gulf of Mexico As expected, there are now a number of tankers that are open prompt in the U.S. Gulf or Caribbean, but there are still not that ma...