German base oil rerefiner Avista Oil AG changed its ownership structure after Bitburger Holding GmbH bought a 45 percent stake of the company from two existing shareholders, Core Link GmbH and Nord Holding, which are exiting. The value of the deal was not disclosed and the transaction is subject to the German antitrust authoritys approval.

Meanwhile, another shareholder, Skion GmbH, increased its stake in the company from 35 percent to 45 percent. The rest of Avistas shares remain in the hands of Dr. Weinberger Management & Consult GmbH.

Core Link has significantly shaped and driven our growth in Europe and the United States. Due to age, the shareholder representatives involved have recommended that the future growth projects should be accompanied by a new investor in order to enable us to achieve long-term and sustainable further growth, Avista Oil told LubesnGreases.

The company said that Skion, together now with Bitburger, will continue to be an anchor shareholder of Avista Oil. Bitburger, which is better known for its beer brand, declined to comment on the deal saying, the company is not discussing our investments.

Nord Holding said it was pleased to support the German rerefiner.

We supported the companys major developments such as their international expansion in the U.S. The new shareholder base allows Avista Oil to reach the next level of growth, Nord said in a press release.

With the new shareholder structure, Avista Oil will continue to be accompanied by industrially experienced and family-oriented shareholders, company CEO Marc Verfuerth said in another press release. Together with these strong and long-term oriented shareholders at our side, we look forward to further developing technologically and expanding into new markets, he said.

Avista Oil is based in Uetze, Germany. The companys current used oil processing capacity totals 500,000 metric tons per year. It has two rerefining facilities in Europe and one in the U.S. with combined base oil production capacity of about 241,000 t/y, according to LubesnGreases Guide to Global Base Oil Refining.

Avista Oil is currently developing an additional 100,000 t/y of base oil production capacity, according to the company. Avista and United Kingdom-based used oil collector Slicker Recy-cling Ltd. entered into a partnership in mid-2018 to build a used oil rerefinery in Kalundborg, Denmark. Construction of the rerefinery, which will produce API Group I base oil, was expected to be finalized by the end of 2019. The plants base oil production capacity wont be set until engineering is completed, but Avista at the time noted that the yield for its technology is typically around 60 to 70 percent base oil per ton of used oil feedstock. The feedstock capacity of the Kalundborg plant will be 100,000 t/y.

The site in Kalundborg had an existing Avista Oil rerefinery with capacity to make 42,000 t/y of Group I oils but plant ceased production in July 2017 following a fire.

Doing Deals

ExxonMobil donated over 1,000 liters of its M2-V aviation hydraulic fluid to Heritage Concorde, a preservation group which restores Concorde aircraft. The hydraulic fluid was used to operate the aircraft’s “droop nose,” which pilots lowered during takeoff and landing for improved visibility.

Krahn Chemie Group and Swiss specialty chemicals company Lanxess expanded their sales partnership for biocides and preservatives into Austria. The products are used for numerous industrial preservation and disinfection applications, including cooling lubricants for metalwoking.

Lanxess also made Palmer Holland its distributor for additives products in North America.

Petronas Lubricants International and Al Maha Petroleum Products Marketing Co. signed an agreement for the latter to distribute Petronas lubricant products in Oman.

IMCD, a global specialty chemicals ingredient sales, marketing and distribution company, changed its lubricants business group name to lubricants and fuels to better reflect its portfolio of fuel components and additives.

Chemical supplier Azelis signed a distribution agreement with Drivs Rsiniques et Terpniques, a French manufacturer of rosin and turpentine derivatives extracted from pine trees, for tall oil fatty acids and distilled tall oil used in the lubricants and coatings, adhesives, sealants and elastomers markets throughout Europe.

Marine fuels and lubricants supplier Aegean Marine Petroleum Network emerged from Chapter 11 restructuring under a new name – Minerva Bunkering – as a wholly owned subsidiary of Mercuria Energy Group Ltd., an independent energy and commodity company based in Geneva, Switzerland.

On Site

Independent German lube maker Fuchs Petrolub SE announced the opening of its new lubricants blending plant in Wujiang in China’s Jiangsu province. The plant has production ca-pacity of 100,000 t/y in its first phase, almost double that of the Shanghai plant that it will replace.

Castrol India is to expand the capacity of its Silvassa lubricant blending plant. Current capacity is around 80 million liters per year and will increase it to 120 million liters at a cost of U.S. $19.8 million.

Tatneft plans to open a 200,000 t/y lubricants blending plant at its Taneco refinery site in Nizhnekamsk, Russia, according to company officials.

Chevron established a second Group II base oil hub in Africa through a distribution agreement with Socit Afriquia Lubrifiants, a subsidiary of the Casablanca, Morocco-based Akwa Group, extending its coverage of the African market.

German chemical company BASF will increase production of alkylethanolamine by 20 percent to 110,000 t/y from 2020 at its plant in Ludwigshafen, Germany. Alkylethanolamines are used in lubricants in metalworking fluids, coatings and polyurethanes, among others. Meanwhile, the companys fuel and lubricant solutions unit has listed key lubricant additives on the recently revised European Ecolabel list, which allows for fully formulated environmentally acceptable lubricants. In Europe, EALs are increasingly used in industrial applications.

Family-owned lubricant company Vickers Oils opened a new 1,700 square meter research and development laboratory and revamped its existing lab at its production site in Leeds, U.K.

Personnel Column

Valentina Serra-Holm is the new vice president of global product marketing at Calumet Specialty Products, a U.S. hydrocarbon products manufacturer. A familiar presence in the conference hall in her role as president of the Union of the European Lubricants Industry, Serra-Holm was formerly director of global marketing and technology at Swedish naphthenic base oil producer Nynas AB.

South Korean chemical company Songwon Industrial Co. Ltd. promoted Elena Scaltritti to the role of division leader of industrial chemicals, while Gerard Mulqueen will become leader fuel and lubes.