Shell Lubricants last week announced the start-up of its newest lubricants complex in Asia. With a production capacity of 50 million gallons a year, and the potential for a phased development to 100 million gallons a year, the complex could become one of Shell's top three lubricants blending plants worldwide in volume terms, the company said.
Located in Zhuhai, Guangdong Province, the blending plant will be Shell's sixth in China and will produce consumer, transport, industrial and marine lubricants, targeted at the Chinese market.
"The investment in a lubricants blending plant in Zhuhai is part of Shell's strategy of selective Downstream growth and allows us to support demand from local and international customers based in China, which is the world's fastest growing lubricants market , "said David Pirret, Executive Vice President for Shell Lubricants.
Shell also announced new investment in a technical facility at the complex. This will offer a range of technical services, including a quality control laboratory to provide key customers and original equipment manufacturers (OEMs) in the automotive industry with technical research, marketing and training services related to their lubricants applications.
For the third consecutive year, Shell has been named the number one global lubricants supplier - selling more lubricants in 2008 than any other company in the world, with a 13% share of the market in volume terms (Source: Kline & Company). Shell is already the largest international lubricants supplier in Asia by sales volume and the No. 1 international supplier of lubricants in terms of market share in China.
