Ashland reported $109 million in operating income for its Valvoline segment during the three months ending June 30 (the third quarter of Ashlands fiscal year), up 1.9 percent from $107 million year to year. Valvolines sales revenue for the quarter declined 2 percent to $500 million, down from $510 million in the year-ago quarter.

Results were driven by solid overall lubricant volume growth with particular strength among do-it-for-me customers, including both those served through installers and those served by Valvoline Instant Oil Change quick lubes, the company said in its earnings news release.

Within Valvolines international channel, volume grew 6 percent.

Valvolines overall sales mix continued to improve, Ashland said, with U.S. premium-branded lubricant sales volume increasing to 45.3 percent of total sales volumes, up from 40.8 percent a year earlier.

Including all operations, Covington, Kentucky-based Ashland posted operating income of $175 million on sales of $1.3 billion.

SK Lubricants

SK Lubricants reported operating profit of 132.9 billion South Korean won (U.S. $116.2 million) for the second quarter, up 220.2 percent from 41.5 billion won a year earlier. Sales declined 0.5 percent to 653.3 billion won, from 656.4 billion won in 2015s second quarter.

The operating profit jumped as strong demands in the global market boosted sales, and inventory-related gains are also reflected, parent company SK Innovation said in its earnings news release. The market condition for lubricants is expected to be stable due to growing demand for premium base oil products.

S-Oil

Second-quarter operating income for S-Oils base oil business totaled 128 billion won, up 60.9 percent from 79.6 billion won a year earlier. Revenue slid 7.4 percent to 345.8 billion won, down from 373.5 billion won in the year-ago quarter.

In its earnings presentation, the company said a solid level of price spread continued for high-quality products.

BP

BPs lubricants business reported an underlying replacement cost profit before interest and tax of $412 million for the second quarter, up 3.8 percent from $397 million in 2015s second quarter. The quarter results reflect continued strong performance in growth markets and premium brands and lower costs from simplification and efficiency programs, the company said.

Hydrodec

Transformer oil rerefiner Hydrodec Group expects that revenues from continuing core rerefining business for 2016s first half will reach $7.6 million, up 130 percent from $3.3 million for the first half of 2015.

In its six-month trading update, the U.K.-based company said sales volumes of its Superfine brand transformer oil and process oil totaled nearly 16.8 million liters – compared to 1.7 million liters for the first half of 2015 – reflecting full commissioning of its rebuilt and expanded Canton, Ohio, plant at the end of 2015. An explosion and fire destroyed the processing unit at the Canton rerefinery in December 2013.

The main drivers in 2016 have been to refocus on the core transformer oil re-refining technology by optimizing the performance of the Canton facility, and to increase production levels through a combination of leveraging the experience gained since fully commissioning the plant at the end of last year along with specific targeted operating improvements, the company stated in its update.

In March, Hydrodec Group sold its United Kingdom operations – including its waste oil collection business and a proposed rerefinery – to a substantial shareholder, Andrew Black, for 1 pound (U.S. $1.43) and assumed debt. The company noted it retained an economic interest in the proposed U.K. rerefinery project and, to the extent the project is developed, an agreement to recover its incurred costs associated with the rerefinery.