D-A Lubricant, Inc. plans to relocate production of certain Brad Penn Lubricants (acquired from ARG late last year) from Bradford, Pennsylvania to Lebanon, Indiana. D-A plans to begin producing Brad Penn oils in Indiana in April, investing $3.9 million to expand production at the Lebanon manufacturing plant to accommodate the additional production there.

Low viscosity SAE 0W-XX passenger car motor oil accounted for under 5% of the total global PCMO demand in 2014. This grade is forecast to increase to over 7% by 2023, according to the recently released LubesNet Database, from market research and consulting firm Kline & Company. The continuing global migration to lower viscosity grade PCMO will result in higher penetration of synthetics and semi-synthetics.

BASF and PETRONAS Chemicals jointly announced they will build a 30,000 metric tons world-scale production plant for 2-Ethylhexanoic Acid at the site of their existing joint venture in Kuantan, Malaysia. Construction of this plant is expected to start in the fourth quarter of 2016. 2-EHAcid is a chemical intermediate used in the production of synthetic lubricants as well as oil additives.

Dana has announced the launch of Spicer® XFE 75W-90 axle lubricant, an all-new synthetic gear oil to further improve fuel economy in high-efficiency drivetrain solutions while qualifying for an initial 500,000-mile drive axle lubrication change interval. It meets the requirements of SAE J2360 and is qualified to meet Dana SHAES256 Rev C specification.

Nynas has appointed a new market manager for the tyre oil segment, Dr. Herbert Fruhmann. He will replace Thorsten Lutze in the role, who is now a Global Account Manager at Nynas. Fruhmann has worked at Nynas for almost nine years, most recently as the Market Manger for the Base Oils segment.

• Chevron Oronite Names Robert Stockwell OEM and Industry Liaison for North America
• Total Marketing Middle East to Manufacture Hitachi-branded 'Genuine' Oils for Hitachi Construction Machinery Middle East
• Royal Dutch Shell plc: Shell Updates on Planned Maintenance at Pearl GTL, Qatar
• HollyFrontier Reports Fourth Quarter Net Loss
• Shell Lubricants Picked by Bridgestone Retail Operations (Firestone Auto Care, Tires Plus, Hibdon Tires Plus and Wheel Works brands) as Supplier of Choice for Automotive Lubricants at BSRO’s More Than 2,200 Company-owned, U.S.-based Tire and Automotive Service Centers, Starting Jan. 1, 2016