Volume 1 Issue 11

SSY Base Oil Shipping Report

Europe enjoyed a reasonably active week, and the United States is not a bad place for a ship to be seeking employment either. Asian markets, however, are still not fully functioning after the lunar holidays. -by Adrian Brown

ExxonMobil Plans More Base Oil Projects

ExxonMobil, the worlds largest base oil supplier, has made capital investments at several plants the past few years. Apparently it plans more of the same in coming years.

Equity Firm Acquires Heartland

Private equity firm Wynnchurch Capital acquired do-it-for-me oil change giant Heartland Automotive Services Inc. for $1.3 billion, the companies announced last week. The Chicago-based firm partnered with Jiffy Lube franchise Mid-Atlantic Lubes Inc. for the acquisition, but declined to comment on details of the partnership.

Fuchs Adds Wireless, Sensor-Based Monitoring

Fuchs Petrolub SE acquired Dallas, Texas-based wireless sensor technology company Fluid Vision Technologies LLC for less than 1 million (U.S. $1.2 million) so it could offer automated process fluid condition monitoring.

Calumet Posts Smaller Losses

Calumet Specialty Product Partners L.P. reported a $64.9 million net loss for 2017s fourth quarter, smaller than the $79.6 million net loss in 2016s fourth quarter. For the full year the companys net loss shrank to $85.1 million, compared to a $328.6 million net loss for 2016.

From Other Editions of Lube Report

Briefly Noted

Indias Numaligarh Refinery Ltd. dispatched 80 metric tons of wax into the United States, marking the companys entry into the North American market. Distributed energy services company Aggreko extended its lubricants agreement with Shell through 2020, making Shell Aggrekos largest lubricant supplier in North America, Latin America, Asia-Pacific and Russia. Molyslip is looking for a U.S. distribution partner to help the United Kingdom-based company increase its presences in the North American market. The lubricant specialist wants to partner with an oil and gas focused company.