Forward to friend Subscribe contact OATS alt oats OATS Bulletin. Issue 88 – November 2007

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Click on any of the story titles to go straight to the news item.
1 . Strategic options are being considered for Infineum
2 . Detroit Diesel increases four-stroke approved oils list
3 . Enhanced transmission fluid from Exxon and Allison
4 . Galp takes on Agip distribution in Iberia
5 . EARL Online gets speed boost
6 . Shell and Tatneft in new Tatarstan oil programme
7 . China to develop ‘a major industry’ from used oil
8 . Bearing lubrication training guide now published separately
9 . US test shows lubes may cause particulate emissions
10 . Mazda and Ford to expand Thai joint venture
11 . Euro organisation’s congress in Spain keynotes bio lubrication
12 . Daimler, Volkswagen take shares in German biofuels company
13 . Volvo, Renault trucks for new Russian assembly plant
14 . Citroën opens landmark showroom in Paris
15 . Brussels forum postponed



1. Strategic options are being considered for Infineum
According to news agencies, ExxonMobil and Royal Dutch Shell ‘are undertaking an ongoing study of strategic alternatives for the Infineum additives joint venture’. It has been confirmed that strategic options are being investigated on behalf of the shareholders by investment bankers. No timescale has been given, no decisions yet made, and, at the time of writing, all parties are maintaining a considerable degree of silence. Industry insiders are speculating that this could mean the sale of Infineum, which was established in 1996 with the amalgamation of the joint-venture companies’ respective additives divisions.

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2. Detroit Diesel increases four-stroke approved oils list

Detroit Diesel has added a number of engine oils to its Power Guard oil specification 93K218 Approved Oils List, for use in Series 60, MBW 4000, and MBE 900 EPA07 engines equipped with EGR and after-treatment devices. The oils are similar to API CJ-4, and the approvals are for use in all four-stroke cycle series engines with an after-treatment system, EPA07 and older (including legacy engines), operating on ULSD fuel. The latest additions include: Castrol Ltd. Tection ES 15W-40; Total Lubrifiants Rubia TIR 7900 15W-40; Smitty’s Supply Sureguard Super Fleet 15W-40; and Warren Oil Company AutoZone 15W-40 CJ-4.
More at: Detroit Diesel

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3. Enhanced transmission fluid from Exxon and Allison

ExxonMobil and Allison Transmission are to jointly release a new synthetic transmission fluid, branded Mobil Delvac Synthetic ATF, which will replace the current severe-application ATF of the same name. This product meets the requirements of the TES-295 certification. With it, the partnership aims to improve the performance of automatic transmissions that operate under the most severe conditions. This enhanced-formulation lubricant, to be made available globally for the first time, is intended for use in trucks, buses, utility vehicles, haulers and vans. For more information on Mobil Delvac Synthetic ATF and other Mobil commercial vehicle lubricants and services, visit Mobil Delvac. For more information on Allison Transmission Inc. visit Allison Transmission.

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4. Galp takes on Agip distribution in Iberia

Galp Energia of Portugal is to acquire the wholesale and retail marketing of Eni’s Agip oil products in Spain and Portugal. Galp, founded in 1999 by the amalgamation of the oil refiner and distributor Petroleos de Portugal, and the natural gas provider Gas de Portugal, is now that country’s leading integrated oil and natural gas organisation. It also has increasing interests in Spain. Italy’s Eni is an integrated energy company that is active in around seventy countries. Agip – Azienda Generale Italiana Petroli – was formed in 1926. Eni has a one-third stake in Galp Energia, and says that the new moves, if approved by the relevant authorities, will help to strengthen its presence in the Iberian region through Galp’s refining and marketing abilities.
More at: Galp release

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5. EARL Online gets speed boost

Over the next few months OATS will be rolling out EARLweb4, the 4th release of EARL Online. Launched over 8 years ago now, there are over 100 EARL Online websites currently under management – both B2C public access internet sites and B2B password-protected extranet ones.
This 4th edition package will exploit recent improvements in web management technology to deliver faster information processing and delivery for all users. In addition, the new technology will provide even greater resilience and security.
For more information on EARL Online you can download the brochure here, or email sales@oats.co.uk or call the Sales Team on + 44 (0) 1793 61 61 38.

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6. Shell and Tatneft in new Tatarstan oil programme

Shell has formed a strategic partnership with Tatneft, Russia’s sixth-largest oil producer, refiner and marketer. The aim of the partnership is to increase the level of oil being processed in the oil-rich Russian Republic of Tatarstan to 4 billion tons, up by 25% on the last year. Tatneft has been processing heavy oil for some thirty years, and is now to build the country’s first refinery since the Soviet era. When operational, the plant will refine 7 million tons of crude oil per year.

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7. China to develop ‘a major industry’ from used oil

According to China Daily, ‘90% of the country’s lubricating oil is wasted’ because only 10% of it burns completely in the crankcase. The country consumes at least 6 million tons annually, and this is increasing by an average of 6.4% each year. Last year, just 20,000 tons were recycled. Now, China has given priority to its oil-recycling programme, designating it as a national specific fund project by the National Development and Reform Commission. As a result, it expects recycling in 2007 to top 80,000 tons. Wang Shuwen, deputy secretary-general of China Association of Resources Comprehensive Utilization, has told the country’s motorists that when they have their oil changed ‘much of the leftover lube oil is not recycled’; he admitted to ‘not knowing what happens to the missing oil’ but warned of the health risks of incorrect disposal such as dumping or illegal burning. Between 80% and 90% of the country’s used oil could be reprocessed and re-refined, and, in an attempt to achieve this, four used oil recycling stations are to be built in Liaoning Province in the north-east of the country, at the start of a programme to build some 20,000 such stations across China. A used oil recycling and development centre has been operational in Beijing for some months, and the Yangtze and Yellow River areas will be next. It is thought that used oil recycling and reprocessing could soon become a major industry in China; meanwhile, its government has noted the Australian levy of 5.45 cents per litre on new oil to fund used oil recycling.

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8. Bearing lubrication training guide now published separately
The Bearing Specialists Association (BSA) has published an updated version of its bearing industry’s Lubrication Guide, and has made it available, for the first time, independently of the organisation’s In-house Training Guide. For thirty years, the ITG has been the training tool for employees in the bearing industry. BSA is the international service and educational resource, knowledge-sharing and networking promotor of fifty companies who distribute factory-warranted ball, roller, and anti-friction bearings, and of a further forty-seven invited manufacturers of bearings and related products. The organisation is the leader in developing bearing industry training materials. The Lubrication Guide is available at $10 per copy to members, or $19.95 per copy to non-members. You can order through info@bsahome.org , learn more about certification at  BSA Certification or visit  BSA for general information about the Bearing Specialist Association.

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9. US test shows lubes may cause particulate emissions

According to the American Chemical Society (ACS), even motor vehicles fuelled by clean-burning hydrogen produce toxic particle emissions. This is one of the findings of a joint study conducted by government and academic researchers in Washington and Minnesota, which also says that the adverse effects of emissions from lubrication oil are ‘important yet little recognised’. The study is published in the latest issue of the ACS Environmental Science and Technology. The organisation says that although the contribution made by diesel-fuelled vehicles to air pollution is well known, that of lubes is less so. A particle emissions test conducted on a modified truck diesel engine running on clean-burning hydrogen found that higher levels of metal-rich particles were emitted – several of which had the potential to cause lung damage.
More at: ACS

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10. Mazda and Ford to expand Thai joint venture

Mazda Motor Corporation and Ford Motor Company intend to build a new $500 million passenger car plant at AutoAlliance, their joint manufacturing venture in Thailand. The plant will begin production in 2009, when it will manufacture both companies’ small passenger cars at an expected rate of 100,000 units per year. The plant will use the VOC- and CO²- emissions reducing Three Layer Wet Paint system, invented by Mazda. Pick-up trucks are currently manufactured at the same site, which will be able to accommodate up to mid-size segment vehicles. Overall, the plant is expected to then be capable of producing 275,000 units annually. The cars built here are intended for sale in Thailand, and for export to other ASEAN markets. AutoAlliance Thailand Co. Ltd was formed in 1995, and contributes to the local economy by buying about 90% of its components from Thai-based suppliers.

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11. Euro organisation’s congress in Spain keynotes bio lubrication
The UEIL Congress, held in October at Abba Triana in Seville, Spain, took ‘Sustainable development and the lubricants industry’ as its title. The two-day event featured keynote addresses centred on biodegradable lubricants; the cultivation and use of renewable resources; issues of sustainability and performance; and, specifically, the impact of biodiesel on engine oil performance. The latter was presented by Mike McCabe, Lubrizol’s regional business manager in Europe for engine oils.
Nigel Battersby of Shell spoke on ‘Environmentally Considerate Lubricants’, explaining how the environmental lubricants can match conventional mineral oil-based products in respect of performance level and service life. Other important papers were given by industry experts; these included ‘Biolubricants and their control for sustainable development’, ‘Lubricant development with respect to enhanced tribosystems’, and ‘Vegetable oils and fats as renewable raw materials in the industry and for energy in Germany’.
There are currently no available web links for the papers given at this conference, but a future issue of OATS Bulletin will let you know when there are. Details of UEIL events can be found in Lube magazine, published by the United Kingdom Lubricant Association. Go to UKLA for details. Lube magazine is publishing a special feature on base oils in its February 2008 issue.


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12. Daimler, Volkswagen take shares in German biofuels company

Daimler AG and Volkswagen AG have taken steps to speed the introduction of second-generation, synthetic biomass to liquid fuels into the market. They have taken minority shares in Choren Industries GmbH, Frieberg, Germany, with whom they have been working since 2002 to evaluate BTL’s technical, commercial and environmental impact. The Choren plant is currently being completed, and should be operational by mid-2008, from when it is planned to produce 18 million litres per year. This will be sufficient to fuel 15,000 cars annually. Choren, Daimler and Volkswagen want to see world-scale, 250-million-litre plants in production, and the aim is to announce the exact location of one in Germany by the end of this year. The companies say that some ten to fifteen such plants could be reducing CO² emissions by over three million tons per year by 2020. Choren is a world leader in providing gasification technologies for solid carbonaceous materials. Shell Deutschland Oil GmbH has held a minority interest in Choren since 2005. Full information on this can be seen at  Choren.com


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13. Volvo, Renault trucks for new Russian assembly plant

Volvo has laid the foundation stone of a €100 million assembly plant in Kaluga, Russia, in a free economic zone south-west of Moscow, which it expects to be operational in early 2009. Russia is currently Volvo’s fastest-growing market; its sales there between January and August 2007 were 109% up on the same period in 2006, and the company expects to sell more than 20,000 units in Russia by the end of this year. The new plant at Kaluga will assemble some 10,000 Volvo trucks and 5,000 Renault trucks per year, meeting a ‘sharply rising demand’ for heavy-duty trucks in Russia and the Commonwealth of Independent States. The vehicles involved will include the Volvo FH, FM and FE models, and the Renault Premium and Kerax. More details are at www.rian.ru

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14. Citroën opens landmark showroom in Paris

Citroën’s spectacular showroom in Paris is the first new building in thirty years on the Champs-Élysées, where it occupies a site that the company acquired eighty years ago. The covers came off in September 2007, to reveal a 30-metre-high geometric glass and steel latticework, dominated by soaring chevrons. On view, as they rise vertically, are eight rotating turntables beneath mirrors; together, these present a spectacular column of cars. Natural daylight floods in by day, and at night the structure is artificially lit in shades of Citroën-liveried red and white. Visitors are conveyed to the top floor for fine views of Paris, and are then able to walk down past each storey, on which the exhibits will be changed in accordance with a planned programme to reflect certain themes. The inaugural theme is ‘sustainable innovation’, and there are useful touch-screen displays to help explain it all.

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15. Brussels forum postponed

Unfortunately it has been necessary to postpone the forum in Brussels later this month and OATS apologises to all those who have enquired about it.

And we owe an apology those who tried to use the faulty email link to Andre Dekerf in the last issue. This is the correct link adekerf@oats.co.uk

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