Fuels & Lubes International 2012 – Quarter 1

Newsbites
Beijing to introduce new emission standards
ExxonMobil launches upgraded synthetic circulating oils
ExxonMobil Chemical appoints Birdsall as vice president of global synthetic fluids business
Japan extends tax breaks for lowpolluting vehicles
Bapco inaugurates base oil plant
Nynas to take over Shell’s Harburg base oil plant in Germany
S’pore’s LTA to take over fuel efficiency labeling
South Korea to introduce new fuel efficiency system
Amyris and Total partner to produce renewable fuel
Chevron Phillips Chemical completes acquisition of Neste PAO Plant in Belgium

Infineum appoints new CEO, Asia-Pacific sales director
Infineum International has appointed Xavier le Mintier as chief executive officer, succeeding Dominique Fournier who retired in December, after seven years at Infineum. Le Mintier joins Infineum from Shell, where he was most recently executive vice president for Shell Oil Products Africa, a position he held since 2006. In this role, he had executive responsibility for the full Shell Downstream operations in Africa, covering retail, commercial, supply and distribution across 33 countries. Prior to this, he was the vice president of Shell’s global aviation fuels business, responsible for all operations across more than 80 countries. In the course of an extensive and highly international career at Shell over 30 years, he has worked at Shell’s chemicals, retail, B2B, supply and distribution businesses, in France, the U.K., Asia, Eastern Europe and Africa. Le Mintier has an Ingenieur (graduate degree) in Chemical Engineering from Ecole de Chimie Organique et Minerale (ESCOM) and an Ingenieur in Oil Refining Engineering from Ecole Superieure des Petroles et Moteurs (ESPM).

Suzhou R&D lab adds another chapter into Afton Chemical’s expansion plans in Asia
The grand opening of the Afton Chemical (Suzhou) Center, located at the Suzhou Industrial Park (SIP), was held with much fun fare on December 21. The new fuel and lubricant additive laboratory will provide customers and OEMs in Asia-Pacific with enhanced technical services, including sample blending, physical and chemical analysis and performance testing. The laboratory is adjacent to the Afton Chemical (Suzhou) Co. Ltd. manufacturing facility, one of four sites acquired by Afton when it bought Polartech in 2010. The new laboratory will replace the current Shanghai R&D facility.

Close to Bottom?
By Jeroen Looye
In the fourth quarter of 2011, macroeconomic factors continued to drive financial markets and also had a large effect on base oil markets. At this point, it would be tough for Europe to avoid a recession. The question remains, however, whether the recession will be relatively shallow or whether the debt crisis will result in the break-up of the eurozone. The latter will most likely cause a global recession, hitting the global banking system which will reduce financing to businesses and consumers. Also, the eurozone is the biggest market for export-driven countries such as China, so a global contagion is unavoidable.

The king of the road
By Cheryl Knight
The “King of the Road” is a contrarian. Scania, one of Europe’s largest heavy-duty truck manufacturers, and so called because of its dominance in the greater than 16-ton market, has introduced an oil specification that requires high ash, while the industry moves to lower ash.

Love the oil, hate the bottles
Sustainability of motor oil bottles in question
By John A. Moore
Latest oil packaging buzz words are “sustainability” and “environmentally friendly.” Valvoline calls its Next-Gen motor oil in a plastic bottle “better for the environment.” Shell and Castrol claim likewise for their bag-in-a-box packages. Nippon Oil boasts that its “new eco-friendly Eneos quart bottle uses 30% less plastic.” They all seem to say—“not half bad” is very good.

Two views of the world lubricant market
By Kelly Thornton
When industry analyst Ned Zimmerman set out to forecast lubricant demand for the next five years, he expected that the motor vehicle market would show the most growth. After all, vehicle sales have been explosive in China, particularly in the recent past. But motorists in China, India and other developing countries are buying newer and more technologically advanced cars which mean longer drain intervals, influenced in part by the growing availability of high-performance lubricants. And that will mean less lubricant demand.

Future what the metalworking fluids
By Cristine VIllena Amurao
Looking into the past helps us understand what the future holds. John Burke, global director of engineering services for Houghton International, in Valley Forge, Penn., U.S.A., discussed his view of the future for metalworking fluids (MWF) at a recent symposium sponsored by the Independent Union of the European Lubricants Industry (UEIL) in Barcelona, Spain.

The future of hybrids
By Hank Hogan
During a conference on powertrain, fuels and lubricants organized by the Japan Society of Automotive Engineers (SAE Japan) in Kyoto, the future of hybrid electric vehicles was the topic of much discussion. This discussion revealed that a number of factors contribute to the growing popularity of hybrid vehicles. These factors include the fact that: battery technology is improving, motors are getting more compact, new infrastructure is needed, cost concerns impact everything, and buyers like the idea of cruising down the highway without leaving behind a trail of exhaust.

From the crankcase and back
By Hank Hogan
When Mark Williams sees a parked car, he sees a renewable resource; not the metal, glass or plastic, but the crankcase lubricant. “Oil molecules don’t wear out,” said Williams, business development manager for Chemical Engineering Partners (CEP) of Irvine, Calif., U.S.A. They could be reprocessed and reused 10 times, he added.