Argus Global Base Oils Conference

Open to all registered delegates. Join your peers for a drinks reception to celebrate the start of your Global Base Oils Conference.

This session will feature a presentation followed by audience Q&A.

• Understand the driving factors of current macroeconomic concerns such as soaring global inflation and high interest rates, conflict in Europe, the US debt crisis and more.
• Increasingly we are seeing countries shift away from trading on the US dollar – including the BRICS countries gold-based trade, and recent India-Indonesia decision to trade in Rupees – what will the lasting impacts of this be?
• Looking to the rest of 2024, what can we expect from the global economy in terms of energy markets?

• Gain insights and perspective on the driving trends of the global base oils and lubricants market
• What are the latest demand- and supply-side developments that impact base oils, such as closures, new builds and expansions across regions, and are they sufficient to balance the market in the mid to long-term?  
• What can we expect in the next 12 months in terms of supply and demand fundamentals and pricing impacts?

• In response to the outbreak of conflict in Europe, sanctions were placed on the trading of Russian origin base oils and their products into Europe. However, recent times have seen an alarming return of these products into the market.
• What do we know about the scale of this problem and what are the impacts of sanctioned products entering European markets and profiting?
• What does the industry need to do to combat this flow of sanctioned products – legislation loopholes, industry association lobbying, and companies making a stand.

Speakers:

• Mark Lord, Managing Director, Aztec Oils
• David Wright, Director General, United Kingdom Lubricants Association (UKLA)

• Engine lubricants are complex fluids engineered specifically to ensure moving parts are kept lubricated and cool to reduce wear and damage, and therefore increase the longevity of vehicles.
• What different types of OEM approvals exist and how important are they in determining the quality of finished lubricants?
• How do approval processes work around the world? What are the most important approvals in each region and how hard are they to achieve?

• The Volkswagen Group (VW) 504/507 lubricant standard is one of the most highly regarded OEM approval ratings – used to define Argus approved GIII prices in Europe – and only one producer (SK Enmove) currently has this approval.
• What is the process for achieving this standard and why is it so rigorous and notoriously difficult to achieve?
• What does this mean for the future of European supply, and will this impact other regions? Are other producers making progress in achieving this standard?

• What regulatory and environmental incentives are in store for OEMs across the three main sectors – automotive, marine, and industrial?
• What matrix of fuels are being considered across these sectors and how will this affect the type of lubricants needed? Considering hydrogen, biodiesel/HVO, ammonia, methanol, LNG and electrification.
• What do the panel think will be the most important developments for engines in their sectors in the future?

• How are changing requirements for commercial and passenger vehicles - including specifications and testing that is still being introduced – impacting additive packages and lubricant formulations?
• Modern lubricant formulations are increasingly complex – how do formulators weigh up considerations such as testing, viscosity grades, industry upgrades, OEM specifications and more to ensure a high-quality performance lubricant?
• How does continued investment and research into additive packages and sustainable alternatives to current formulations benefit the industry?

• Hear from different size blenders from different global regions about the challenges of the current market and how they are adapting their strategies for the future according to their size and location.
• How are blenders ensuring they are meeting growing climate targets whilst maintaining the quality and performance in their products?

Speakers:

• Joris van der List, Technology Manager, Q8 Oils
  
• Jayanta Chatterjee, Global Base Oil Procurement Director, Castrol

Polyalphaolefin (PAO) is a synthetic hydrocarbon and the most used synthetic base oil in lubricants manufacturing.

• How do PAO-based lubricants compare to traditional mineral lubricants in terms of performance, quality, and affordability?
• How does the industry best manage the trade-off between volatility and low viscosity in PAOs?
• Are PAOs a serious contender for the long-term future of the lubricants industry? What needs to be done in terms of investment and incentives to increase their use?

Lithium hydroxide is a key thickening agent used in the manufacturing of lubricating greases, approximately 70% of lubricating greases produced contain lithium.

• Understand the role of lithium hydroxide in the manufacturing and use of lubricating greases, and discover how the grease industry's market share of lithium supply is facing increased competition from batteries and more
• What other challenges face the use of lithium in manufacturing - considering the environmental impact of mining, health and safety, economic viability and more.
• What lithium-free alternatives are coming to the market and what information do we have on their availability and their performance? What are the latest lithium-free developments and potential bottlenecks to be aware of?

• Recent years have seen a regulatory upheaval for the lubricants industry as many chemicals for lubricant manufacturing and additive packages. How are key stakeholders navigating these changes – alternative chemicals, re-labelling, reformulating and more.
• How are regulatory and certification bodies in different regions positioning themselves on key chemicals – such as the antioxidant octyl-butyl diphenylamine (OBDPA) – and what factors into these decisions?
• What end-products are going to be affected the most by regulatory changes?

• How is increasing versatility in US domestic Group II/Group III production affecting the market, particularly for light grades?
• How are rising interest rates, higher base oil and additive costs driving inventory strategies across the lubricant supply chain?
• How is extensive maintenance and programmed shutdowns across Brazil in the second half of 2023 affecting LatAm market dynamics - including increased imports, need for stronger demand for finished lubricants, structural issues.

• What opportunities are available to the base oils producers in today’s changing market, and what are the macro-trends driving the industry?
• How can the industry best move forward and plan effectively to ensure security and quality of supply across the globe? Does this include plans for standardisation of ‘plus’ grades and expansion to re-refining?
• Increasing sustainability and decarbonisation pressures are at the forefront of everyone’s mind. How is the base oil industry positioning itself and what decarbonization strategies might we see?

Speakers include:

• Torsten Nipping, Sales Manager Central Europe, Ergon International

• Learn how re-refining technology has advanced over recent years and why it is becoming an increasingly appealing and important part of the global base oils economy
• Where are key re-refining hubs located and what is their current capacity? Are there any plans for expansion?
• What factors drive interest in re-refining in different regions – legislation, economics, waste oil availability and more.

• How have supply and demand fundamentals changed in Asia?
• What are the repercussions on base oil prices, margins, and spreads?
• How will regional arbitrages change with these developments and what opportunities do they present?

• How are end-users in the marine industry deciding what lubricants to use going forwards?
• How are end-users, OEMs and formulators working together to ensure lubricants that are high-quality, meet testing requirements and deliver on strict decarbonisation and energy efficiency goals in the marine sector?
• How do lubricants and engines in ships powered by alternative fuels such as marine biodiesel, ammonia, methanol and hydrogen differ from lubricants designed for fuel oil and marine gas oil?

• What are the advantages and disadvantages of different transportation modes – such as ISO containers, flexitanks etc – and how do you weigh these against each other to get the best rate for freight per metric tonne?
• How is the international shipping industry responding to challenging market conditions such as shortages of ships, labour, low water levels and fuel uncertainty?
• How do freight prices affect competitiveness for suppliers on a global scale? 2021/22 saw increased freight prices and therefore more localised trade – are current lower freight rates representing a more international market?