Thu 27 Mar 2008 11:27

Lubrizol announces 10-year US$1 billion investment plan


Additives supplier to set up manufacturing facility in China to keep up with predicted growth.



The Lubrizol Corporation has announced its decision to launch a 10-year phased investment plan to upgrade and increase global capacity in its additive business. This will be achieved through an extensive debottlenecking program at its existing facilities and a greenfield investment in China.

In an effort to meet the evolving demands of the global lubricant and fuel additives market, Lubrizol will increase investments to keep pace with the 1% per year predicted annual growth in global additive demand and to ensure the security of future supply. As part of a 10-year plan, Lubrizol has signed a letter of intent to reserve land use rights for a manufacturing site in the Tianjin Harbour Industrial Park, China. This will be the location of a wholly owned manufacturing facility, which will be developed and phased in as market needs require. By phasing in selective capacity additions in China, Lubrizol aims to respond to lubricant growth in Asia and better match its manufacturing footprint with global demand patterns.

Debottlenecking and the China investment will require a $200 million investment over the next decade. This is in addition to Lubrizol Additives segment's continued significant reinvestment in its existing operations and environmental compliance at roughly the rate of depreciation.

Steve Kirk, Lubrizol Additives president, said, "We will invest over a billion dollars in the next decade to ensure we continue as the most reliable supplier to the fuels and lubricants industry. However, the appropriate phasing of new capacity over time is critical."

The Tianjin site is in phase three of the Industrial Park development plan and will be ready for construction in late 2009. The wholly owned capabilities will eventually include driveline and industrial additives blending, marine additives for export and a technical service laboratory.

This new site is also expected to accommodate the relocation of the Tianjin Branch plant of the Lanzhou Lubrizol Lanlian Additive Co., Ltd. (LLZL) engine oil additive joint venture, which must be moved from its current location in Tianjin Tanggu due to a change in zoning. By sharing this site with the LLZL joint venture, Lubrizol believes both parties will achieve cost saving synergies, and the joint venture will benefit from doing more business with Lubrizol.

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