Indianapolis-based Calumet Specialty Products Partners, L.P. last Tuesday announced that it acquired the Bel-Ray Company, Inc., a New Jersey-based manufacturer and global distributor of high-performance lubricants. Financial terms of the transaction were not disclosed.

Privately-held Bel-Ray manufacturers and distributes a wide array of high-end specialty lubricants sold through its Industrial, Mining and Powersports divisions. Founded in 1946 by William Kiefer, Bel-Ray's products are sold in more than 100 countries across six continents. The company owns and operates a 32-acre manufacturing facility in New Jersey with convenient access to ports in New York, Newark and Philadelphia. Bel-Ray is managed by Mr. Kiefer's daughter, Daryl Bronson, who has led the company's growth since his retirement in 1995.

Bel-Ray's specialty lubricants are used in the aerospace, automotive, energy, food, marine, military, mining, motorcycle, powersports, steel and textiles industries.

"This transaction signals our ongoing commitment to growing a global specialty products business," stated Jennifer Straumins, President and COO of Calumet Specialty Products Partners. "Bel-Ray will join an existing portfolio of market-leading specialty products brands that include our Royal Purple line of high-performance synthetic lubricants and our Penreco line of FDA-registered food-grade products."

"Bel-Ray's New Jersey-based manufacturing plant will provide us with an East Coast facility capable of serving both domestic and export markets," continued Straumins. "This facility, which currently produces lubricating oils and greases, has ample capacity to supply incremental customer demand for our products."

"Given the private, fragmented nature of the specialty products markets we occupy, Calumet remains an active consolidator of established, profitable businesses that complement our existing product portfolio," concluded Straumins.

"We are excited by the potential opportunities stemming from this transaction and look forward to having the employees of Bel-Ray join the Calumet family of companies," stated Bryan Yourdon, President of Royal Purple and Calumet's Vice President of Branded and Packaged Products.

"As a globally recognized specialty lubricants brand, Bel-Ray provides us with an entry point into new customers and geographies where we will have an opportunity to cross-sell our existing lines of products, such as Royal Purple, among others," continued Yourdon. "Over time, we will seek to pursue the acquisition of additional branded specialty product lines that help us to further achieve profitable growth on a global scale."

In mid 2012, Calumet acquired Royal Purple for total consideration of approximately $335 million and in January 2012, Calumet through its subsidiary, Calumet Missouri, LLC, purchased the aviation and refrigerant lubricants business, a polyol/ester-based synlubes business, from Hercules Incorporated, a subsidiary of Ashland , Inc. that included a manufacturing facility in Louisiana, MO.

Also in January 2012, Calumet announced that it acquired all of the outstanding membership interests of TruSouth Oil, LLC, a specialty petroleum packaging and distribution company located in Shreveport, Louisiana.

Calumet is also a producer of lube base oils, having a plant in Shreveport, Louisiana with 7,000 barrels per day API Group II and 4,800 b/d Group I capacity and 100 b/d naphthenic capacity, and another base oil plant in Princeton, Louisiana, with 6,900 b/d naphthenic capacity.

Calumet Specialty Products Partners, L.P., a master limited partnership, is an independent producer of high-quality, specialty hydrocarbon products in North America. Calumet processes crude oil and other feedstocks into customized lubricating oils, solvents and waxes used in consumer, industrial and automotive products. Calumet also produces fuel products including gasoline, diesel and jet fuel. Calumet, based in Indianapolis, Indiana, has eleven facilities located in northwest Louisiana, northwest Wisconsin, northern Montana, western Pennsylvania, Texas and eastern Missouri.