FL-97-111 LUBRICANTS PROCESSING STRATEGIES

Description:

A producer of lube base oils is currently facing pressures greater than at any period in the history of the industry. A number of new high capacity, low production cost plants are coming onstream that thmaten the competitiveness of existing older facilities. Lube base oils are becoming much more of a global commodity that allow imported material to move into markets that previously were the private domain of regional producers. Product specifications are becoming much more stringent at an ever increasing pace. The supply of suitable and affordable feedstocks is dwindling and must be supplemented by lower quality material that requires substantially more processing to achieve the same or now even higher quality products. Around the world, the demand and price stability of base oils varies from negative to very robust. Byproduct values can have significant impact on a plant’s economic viability. Lube oil production and the technical issues that must be faced in the next few years will be radically different than those addressed in this century.