Bahrain opens US$9 million lube re-refinery

Bahrain announced the opening of its US$9 million refinery for reprocessing used lubricating oil. The opening ceremony took place on January 18, under the patronage of Sheikh Abdulla bin Hamad Al Khalifa, head of the Public Commission for the Protection of Marine Resources and Wildlife. The state-of-the-art refinery is one of the largest, and most environmentally friendly used lube oil recycling facility in the GCC (Gulf Cooperation Council). Agas Lubes, with the capacity to process 36,000 metric tons (MT) of used oil annually, has integrated facilities for used oil collection, transportation, storage, quality checks, processing and export of base oils and other by-products worldwide. The new re-refinery is equipped to recycle used lubricants with near zero waste, using sophisticated green technologies such as “wiped thin film evaporator,” also known as “short path or molecular distillation” under high vacuum. This technology enables the recycling of used lube oil into high-value products with minimal environmental impact. “Agas Group dedicates this new state-of-the art lube base oil recycling refinery to the environmentally friendly citizens of Bahrain,” said Eric D’souza, director of Agas Lubes. (January 20, 2011)