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Gazpromneft-Lubricants - a subsidiary of Gazprom Neft specializing in the production and sale of oils, greases and technical fluids - has started performing marine lubricants deliveries in the Caspian Sea port of Makhachkala, located in the Republic of Dagestan.

The first supply to the dredging vessel Dniester was carried out as part of a three-year agreement with Rosmorport signed in the spring of 2017.

According to the agreement, Gazpromneft-Lubricants is to deliver 1,500 tonnes of marine lubricants to Rosmorport's vessels.

The sales territories of Gazpromneft-Lubricants covered under the agreement include the Northwestern, Far Eastern, Southern and North Caucasus Federal Districts of Russia.

In addition to Makhachkala, Gazpromneft-Lubricants also supplies marine lube oils in the Caspian Sea port of Astrakhan.

Roman Miroshnichenko, Head of the marine lube oils business at Gazpromneft-Lubricants, said: "We supply marine lube oils to the port of Makhachkala in order to satisfy the growing market demand for marine lubricants of high quality. The Caspian Sea is a promising region with a great potential, and we plan to increase our presence in the area in the nearest future."

Established in 2007, Gazpromneft-Lubricants produces Texaco-branded marine motor oils at its plants in Omsk and Moscow. They are made from Russian base oils using Chevron Oronite additives and are under licence from Chevron Marine Lubricants.

Back in February, the company claimed that it had increased its market share in the Russian marine oils business by 10 percent in 2016, bringing its total contribution to sales in the country to 36 percent.

The Gazprom Neft subsidiary said sales of marine lubricants to ships rose by approximately 6,000 tonnes, or 75 percent, to around 14,000 tonnes last year and that deliveries to foreign ship owners in Russian ports more than doubled to 2,200 tonnes.

Image: Drums of Gazprom and Texaco lubricants.