CleanOil Investment Ltd and Jebsen Industrial Technology Company Limited, have announced the start of operations of their joint venture, Zhuhai CleanOil Petrochemical Co., Ltd.

Mr Antony Louis Marden, Chairman of CleanOil Investment Ltd, Mr Hans Michael Jebsen, Chairman of Jebsen Group and Mr Zhou Feng, Vice Party Secretary of CPC, Gaolan Port Economic Zone, graced the opening ceremony held in Gaolan Port Economic Zone, Zhuhai, Guangzhou.

Zhuhai CleanOil, will produce 20,000 tons annually of API Group II/II+ base oil and blend premium lubricating oil for automotive and industrial applications, using Zhuhai CleanOil’s in-house formulations expertise. The product assortment will include top of the range API SN gasoline engine oils and CJ-4 diesel engine oils as well as a host of other industrial lubricating oils such as hydraulic oils and gear oils.

Finished lubricant production is estimated at 35,000 tonnes a year, targeting customers in cities of the Pearl River Delta and the Yangtze River Delta.

The 35,000 square metre facility cost US$40 million, and took two years to build. It will employ about 100 staff.

It has a modern and fully equipped laboratory staffed with highly qualified and experienced technologists & technicians that carry out constant routine analyses to secure highest possible quality control.

Comments from principal investors on the commissioning of the Zhuhai plant: “Anything that is good for the environment and is profitable, has to be a good idea”, says founder and owner of CleanOil Investment Limited, Mr Antony Louis Marden.

“CleanOil is committed to innovating the oil market in China with its disruptive technology, producing high quality base stocks and lubricating oils “Made in China”. Our proprietary, advanced, and environmentally friendly refining processes not only boast lower emissions but also better energy consumption, as we have well proven in our prototype in Hong Kong.” said Mr Marden, “Given that our prototype in Hong Kong has been run successfully and consistently for nearly ten years, it’s time for us to take a big step forward and build a bigger, commercial scale plant. With the recognition and support from the Gaolan Government, we are glad that our first industrial plant is sited here in the national class petrochemical park of Gaolan.”

Jebsen Group Chairman, Mr Hans Michael Jebsen said, “The Group will draw on its knowledge of China’s automotive aftermarket and its China-wide sales and distribution network of industrial products in the region to support the new business and meet the growing demand for quality lube oils.

"We see that China is experiencing challenges in balancing growth and the impact on the environment, ranging from the air pollution from vehicles and factories per annum to contaminated waste water. As a company that has grown with China over the past 120 years, we feel that it is our corporate responsibility to develop and provide solutions to address these environmental issues in order for China to expand in a clean manner. With our long establishment in China market especially in the industrial and the automotive segments, we believe our expertise can further support the distribution of environmentally produced “green” base oils and lubricants.” he concluded.

With a state-of-the-art oil refinery constructed in Gaolan Port Economic Zone, Zhuhai CleanOil Petrochemical Co., Ltd is a joint venture of CleanOil Investment Ltd and Jebsen Industrial Technology Company Limited, the subsidiary of leading and long established Hong Kong family business, Jebsen Group. It will use patented Oil Refining Technology developed by CleanOil to manufacture products for distribution in the Pearl River Delta and Yantze River Delta markets.

CleanOil Investment Limited was set up in Hong Kong in 2012, as the commercialization and investment arm for Research & Development which had been carried out by CleanOil Hong Kong since its establishment in 2002. CleanOil’s highly specialized team of oil engineers spent over a decade to research and develop a disruptive and innovative oil refining process, which it tested and optimized to perfection at their prototype plant in Yeung Long.