The upgraded facility has newly installed research blending capacity to produce finished lubricants for testing in field trials and original equipment manufacturer validation tests. Teardown facilities provide customers access to test data and imagery to support their product performance claims. The facility also sports a 75-seat auditorium, upgraded meeting rooms and a Solutions Hall.

The upgrade and expansion of the analytical and mechanical laboratories, coupled with our new blending and teardown facilities, will allow us to more efficiently meet the needs of our OEM and oil company partners in China, as we will be able to conduct a greater number of tests here in the region, said Jon Rock, vice president, R&D. It will also allow us to develop Afton proprietary tests that focus on the needs of Asia-Pacific.

Chevron Invests in Novvi

Chevron Products Co. and Novvi LLC announced that Chevron has made an equity investment in Novvi LLC. Terms of the transaction were not disclosed. In addition to an equity investment, Chevron and Novvi plan to work together to introduce new base oils and lubricants to the industry in key areas.

We are very pleased that Chevron has decided to invest in Novvi. Chevrons investment is a further validation of the market acceptance that Novvi and its technology have gained, stated Jeff Brown, Novvis CEO. As we continue to increase our global market penetration, Chevrons well-established industry position in base oils and lubricants can further enhance our growth plan.

The investment in Novvi will provide us with access to high-performance renewable base oils, which is strategically aligned with our aggressive growth plan, particularly in the synthetic and renewable lubricants space. said Brent Lok, manager, Chevron Base Oils Marketing and Business Development. Novvis technology creates new possibilities for longer-term product development within Chevron, he added.

CeramicSpeed Opens Lube Lab

Holstebro, Denmark-based CeramicSpeed announced it has established a cycling industry lubrication development lab, following the acquisition of U.S.-based drivetrain efficiency test lab, Friction Facts. According to a company press release, the facility will combine the latest development and testing equipment with expertise provided by Jason Smith, a leading expert in lubricant testing and development.

Smith has been appointed Chief Technology Officer and will apply his understanding of fluid dynamics and engineering to the development of cutting-edge premium products. The lab will investigate how lubricants can improve the efficiency and durability of different drivetrain components. All lab results will be backed up by road testing under a variety of riding conditions and protocols.

Asked about the initiative, Smith added, The Lubrication Development Lab is a research portal designed to further explore the opportunities of maximum drivetrain efficiency. Finding a way to minimize drag and boost performance thanks to a super-fast lubricant formula starts here. And no matter what the results, we will learn more and more.

Rosneft Lubes Soared in 2015

Russian oil major Rosneft produced 779,000 metric tons of base oils, finished lubricants and additives combined in 2015, 6 percent more than the year before. This output solidified the companys position as the second-largest lubricant marketer in Russia, according to the companys annual report.

Rosneft said 457,000 tons of its output were finished lubricants marketed in the domestic market by subsidiary RN-Lubricants. The company did not specify the volume of base oils or additives.

RN-Lubricants sale of premium automotive and industrial lubricants jumped 14 percent to 55,000 tons – a development that Rosneft attributed to Russias import substitution policy. The company focuses on the production of industrial lubricants for large Russian energy and mining companies. Its expanded product portfolio now includes a new line of Plastex-branded greases, a new line of hydraulic oils under the Gidrotec brand, and MEI-20, a new line of electro-insulation oils.

Rosneft is developing its own technology to produce polyalphaolefins with a viscosity index of 140 to 170 and a pour point of minus 50 to minus 65 degrees C. In 2015, we finished the project documentation for the construction of a testing and production facility capable of producing 300 tons of PAOs annually, Rosneft said.

Rerefinery for Saudi Arabia

Chemical Engineering Partners and Gulf Solvents, located in Saudi Arabia, have contracted to build a 155,000 metric ton per year rerefinery in Hail City to produce API Group II/II+ and III base oils. Gulf Solvents will be the first rerefiner to introduce Group II/II+ and III technology in Saudi and the largest in the Middle East in terms of production.

The facility will use rerefining technology developed by Chemical Engineering that has been used in various rerefineries around the world. According to a statement released by the companies, The process will reduce carbon dioxide output compared to the refining of virgin crude oil and by preventing the used oil from being burned.

Russian Base Oil Refiners Push to Modernize

Russian base oil producers are aiming to add around 1 million metric tons per year of API Group II and III capacity by 2020, according to VNIPIneft, a Moscow-based research and design institute. Rosneft and Gazprom Neft are planning to expand their total quantities and rationalize Group I base oil production, Vladimir Kapustin, head of VNIPIneft, told RPIs Lubricants Russia conference in November. Others, such as Tatneft and Slavneft have finished their base oil production modernization or will finish in 2017.

Since the mid-2000s, every base oil expansion or upgrade announced in Russia has suffered significant delays and postponements. Lukoil still has plans to upgrade its plant in Volgograd, but the timeline has been pushed from the mid-2010s to the mid-2020s.

Russia currently has capacity to make 2.2 million t/y of Group I base oil, but this number will be scaled down to around 1.6 million t/y by 2020. Only two plants can make Group II or III stocks. Tatneft has a plant in Niznekamsk with capacity to make 90,000 t/y of Group II and 100,000 t/y of Group III, while Lukoils Volgograd plant can make 30,000 t/y of Group III, along with 520,000 t/y of Group I.

After three years of economic slowdown caused by international sanctions and low crude oil prices, the future seems uncertain. Only Rosneft and Gazprom Neft seem confident about proceeding with base oil projects, according to VNIPIneft.

Quaker Acquires Canadian MWF Specialist

Quaker Chemical Corp. announced that it has acquired Lubricor Inc., a metalworking fluids manufacturer headquartered in Waterloo, Ontario, Canada. Lubricor manufactures and markets synthetic and semisynthetic coolants, hydroforming fluids and stamping products. The company sells to North American customers, primarily Tier 1 and Tier 2 automotive suppliers.

Joe Berquist, vice president and managing director of Quaker North America, commented, With the addition of Lubricors technology, we will have a broader offering to serve our customers. Lubricor has a full portfolio of coolants that complement our existing product line. Their position in hydroforming and stamping brings some different technology to us that we are excited to share with our customers.

Shell Sells Stake in Vivo Energy

Shell has signed an agreement with Vitol Africa B.V. to sell its 20 percent share in Vivo Energy for U.S. $250 million. Completion of the transaction is expected during the first half of 2017, subject to regulatory approval. As part of the transaction, Shell renewed a long-term brand license agreement with Vitol to ensure that the Shell brand remains visible in more than 16 African countries.

Ergon Expands in Asia

Ergon announced that is opening a new bulk storage terminal in Ulsan, South Korea, as well as a new regional office in Singapore. The addition of this storage terminal and office to Ergons global supply and distribution network allows for improved service and accessibility for clients throughout Asia, said Per Klintstam, President of Ergon International, Inc. HyGold 5000BS, Ergons new bright stock, together with most of the companys naphthenic grades and transformer oils, will be available in the Asian market by early 2017.

Gazprom to Build Lube Plant in Europe

Russian oil major Gazprom Neft said it will set up new lubricant production in Western or Central Europe to reduce the volumes being shipped from Russia. In my opinion, we really need additional lubricant blending capacity in Europe as we expand overseas rapidly, said Alexandr Trukhan, head of Gazpromneft-Lubricants. The final decision on the plants location and capacity will be ready by mid-2017. The company operates two blending plants in Europe, in Bari, Italy, and Novi Sad, Serbia.

Gazpromneft-Lubricants expanding presence in overseas markets raised export volumes of premium products to 68,000 tons for the first nine months of 2016, 21 percent more than the same time in 2015. Last year, the company started marketing its products in Vietnam, South Korea, Poland and South Africa. In 2016, we succeeded in expanding our product portfolio with more complex lubricating materials to continue the strategy of technological development and international expansion of our company, Trukhan said.

Zschimmer & Schwarz Acquires Lexolube

Zschimmer & Schwarz Inc. has acquired the Lexolube Division, a supplier of specialty lubricants and lubricant components, from Inolex Inc. The transaction took place on January 3.

Inolex will continue to produce Lexolube products until manufacturing can be transferred to the Zschimmer & Schwarz site in Milledgeville, Georgia, U.S. Lexolube sales will be handled by Zschimmer & Schwarz.

Zschimmer & Schwarz, headquartered in Lahnstein, Germany, develops and produces chemical auxiliaries for the leather, ceramic, textile/fiber, personal care, lubricant, polymer and phosphonate industries. The group comprises 28 companies worldwide, 20 with production facilities.

Saudi Aramco Building R&D Center

Saudi Aramco broke ground a new research and development center at King Abdullah University of Science and Technology. The facility will employ 132 scientists and researchers, supporting the companys upstream and downstream activities. Expected completion of the 11,300 square meter installation is mid-2019.

The center will include laboratories and offices to support research in chemicals, fuel, intelligent systems, solar energy, reservoir engineering, computational modeling and environmental protection. The facility is intended to integrate with the university community and foster networks with other R&D organizations.

East Africa to Add Blending Capacity

Mount Meru plans to open three blending plants, and Mogas will launch a larger blending facility over the next two years in several countries in East Africa, according to industry sources. Chelan Jain, managing director for Mount Meru in Zambia, said in an interview that it will begin blending in Lusaka, Zambia, in June 2017, and in Tanzania and Rwanda in 2018. These blending plants will each have a production capacity of 2,000 metric tons per year.

Ashish Goyal, managing director for Mogas in Tanzania, in an interview at the ICIS African Base Oils & Lubricants Conference, said that the company will open a 22,000 mt/y blending plant in Langa, Tanzania, in the first quarter of 2017. Mogas has contracted with partners for toll blending, but is now transitioning to blending lubricants on its own. The volumes have grown, and our service provider is not able to handle it, Goyal said.

Tanzania only has three blending plants, which Goyal sees as a gap in the countrys blending capacity. He said its new plants location in the port city of Tanga will provide easy access to other markets in East Africa.

Jonathan Njine, managing director for Lubesol, believes a new focus on lubricant blending is taking shape in East Africa. The rush to set up blending plants in the region could be attributed to the exit of multinational corporations from the lubricant market, he said, noting this exit created the opportunity for less experienced corporations to build and operate blending plants.

GF-6 May Be Delayed to 2019

ILSAC GF-6 has slipped behind schedule again and may not get its commercial launch until May 2019. The Auto-Oil Advisory Panel, meeting alongside ASTM Committee D2 on Petroleum Products and Lubricants, heard that the new Sequence IIIH for wear and oil thickening, based on a Chrysler Pentastar engine, has
completed its test matrix, but the ballot for acceptance by ASTM was withdrawn pending resolution of some questions.

Another test, the Sequence VH test for wear, sludge and varnish, which uses a 4.6-liter V8 engine from Ford, had not started its matrix, but was expected to do so by the end of 2016. More worrisome, the new Sequence IVB engine test for valvetrain wear is even further behind and struggling to get ready for matrix testing.

Oronite Enters Engineering & Design Phase for China Facility

Chevron Oronite has entered the front-end engineering and design phase for its new manufacturing facility in Ningbo, China. We are pleased with the progress we are making, said Koon Eng Goh, general manager, Manufacturing and Supply Chain, Asia-Pacific Region, Chevron Oronite, and we appreciate the continued local support from Ningbo. This phase is expected to be completed before the end of 2017,

In March 2015, Oronite signed an investment agreement to build a wholly owned additive manufacturing plant in Ningbo, a seaport city in Chinas Zhejiang Province. Plans call for the Ningbo facility to open as a blending and shipping operation, followed by phased expansion into component manufacturing as lubricant additive demand grows. Oronite stated that the timeline currently calls for blending and shipping activities to begin in 2020.

Chevron Adds Group II Hub

Chevron U.S.A. Inc. announced that it will add an additional storage facility for API Group II base oil in Le Havre, France. This is the fifth Group II supply hub in Europe for Chevrons base oil network. The company also has facilities in Antwerp, Belgium; Liverpool, England; Hamburg, Germany; and Istanbul, Turkey. Initial grades inventoried at the facility include Chevron Neutral Oil 100R and 220R. Chevron Neutral Oil 600R tankage may be added later.

The tankage is owned by LBC Sogestrol Le Havre and is located at the entrance to the Le Havre harbor, near the mouth of the Seine River. By strategically locating our European hubs, we have helped customers meet tightening specifications while reducing supply chain complexity, commented Cary Knuth, Chevrons vice president, base oil. We chose Le Havre … because we can offer customers along the Seine a shorter supply chain.