Repsol is investing 5 million (U.S. $5.8 million) to raise production at its Puertollano blending and packaging facility, the company announced earlier this month. This investment to increase its domestic and international lubricant supply comes as a part of Repsols 2017 to 2021 strategic plan.
Ivn Corral Pedraz, an internal communications officer, told Lube Report the investment will be used for improvements in blending lines, for the installation of new packaging lines, to create additional storage capacity and to increase loading capacity for trucks.
The companys 2017-2021 strategic plan aims to increase total lubricant sales volume in Spain to 300,000 tons and to 1.2 million tons abroad, mainly in Asia and Latin America, according to a press release.
Repsol will increase the plants production capacity from 115,000 tons per year to its full capacity of 170,000 t/y. The plant is expected to be operating at full capacity by 2019, Pedraz noted.
Along with the slated capacity addition, the Madrid-based company has hired nine new employees to work a night shift at the plant and raised the number of contracts with companies that provide transportation, maintenance and other auxiliary services to meet the expected rise in production, Repsol stated.
Photo courtesy of Repsol
Located in La Mancha, Spain, the Puertollano facility is the companys largest lubricant manufacturing facility. Of the roughly 147,000 tons of lubricants sold by Repsol in 2016, about 80 percent were produced at the Puertollano plant.
According to the companys website, the main lubricants manufactured at its plants include automotive, industrial and marine oils. In addition to Spain, Repsol has lubricant production and packaging plants in Portugal, Italy, Turkey, Indonesia, Japan, Peru, Malaysia, China, Russia, Brazil, Ecuador and the United Arab Emirates.