Asia/Pacific News
Low Oil Prices Have "Limited Effect" On Lube Prices
Global lubes supplier UniMarine says falling crude oil prices have only had a "limited effect" on lubricant oil prices, Singapore Solutions reports.
The company's global marine lubricants director, Caroline Huot, explained that as supply and demand of lubricant base oil, which makes up around 50 percent of the lube cost, differs between regions, it means a fall in crude price has less of an impact on lubricant prices.
The introduction of new fuel efficient "eco" engines and associated ship designs were also said to have impacted the lubes market.
“New vessels and new engines throw up challenges for operators and this has an impact on costs. New products come at a cost," said Huot.
"Availability is an issue, as are operational challenges on board so we aim to reduce operational stress on superintendents and onboard engineers.
"There have also been changes on the supply side. Oil refining is not very profitable so refiners are cutting costs and part of this is a reduction in the volumes of lube oils being kept in bulk and cuts in training of lube oil experts at oil companies. So OEMs’ and lube suppliers’ interests are not currently aligned."
Huot also noted a trend towards using BN25 lubes for use with low-sulfur fuel, which is not always available trading to Europe and the U.S., meaning operators may need to look for alternatives.
"This means there is added complexity for ships regarding feed rates, how many lube oil grades to carry on board and how many grades ships are able to carry in tanks," she said.
"Keeping drums of lube oil on deck is difficult and poses safety issues. So owners are in a difficult position."
Late last year, Lubmarine also commented that Emission Control Areas (ECA) had begun placing pressure on lubricant providers to keep up with stricter sulfur regulations.
