Castrol has begun an expansion of its lubricant blending plant in the Eastern China port city of Taicang. At an Oct. 15 ceremony officials said the U.S. $75 million project will double the plants capacity to 145,000 metric tons per year.
The plant was built in 2005, and its expansion will support the expected growth of Chinese demand for lubricants and Castrols business, a spokesman with Castrol parent company BP told Lube Report Asia.
Taicang is located on the Yangtze River delta just northeast of Shanghai. BP said the Castrol plant has manufactured industrial lubricants but that the expansion will allow it to make automotive lubes, too.
Castrol has a second blending plant in China, in the southern city of Shenzhen. It also focuses on the manufacture of industrial lubricants.