my country’s lubricant base oil production process continues to be optimized, and the localization rate is expected to continue to grow

Lubricant base oil, often referred to as base oil, is one of the important raw materials for the production of lubricants. It mainly refers to the blank oil obtained after crude oil has undergone wax removal, hydrogenation and other processes. Lubricating base oil is the most consumed raw material for lubricating oil production, and its quality directly determines the quality of lubricating oil. According to the main components, lubricating oil base oil can be roughly divided into vegetable oil base oil, mineral base oil, synthetic base oil, etc. At present, the base oil commonly used in the production of lubricants is mainly mineral base oil.

At this stage, most lubricant base oil production in my country still uses traditional production processes. However, due to the continuous increase in market demand, traditional production processes have been unable to meet market demand. With the gradual advancement of my country’s scientific and technological level, lubricant base oil production processes are constantly being optimized and innovated. In addition to traditional production processes, production processes such as catalytic dewaxing process, hydrotreating process, and isomerized dewaxing process are gradually being applied.

Lubricating oils have a wide range of applications, and are mostly used in automobiles, industry, aerospace, shipbuilding, machinery and other fields. With the rapid development of my country’s economy and society, the consumption power of residents has gradually increased. Cars have become one of the daily means of transportation for residents. The market penetration rate has gradually increased, driving its production and sales to continue to grow. According to data released by the China Association of Automobile Manufacturers, in 2022, my country’s automobile production and sales will complete 27.021 million units and 26.864 million units respectively, a year-on-year increase of 3.4% and 2.1% respectively. With the rapid development of my country’s automobile market, lubricating oil, as an important accessory to reduce automobile mechanical friction and increase service life, continues to increase market demand, promoting the gradual expansion of its market size. In 2022, my country’s lubricant market size will be 311.46 billion yuan, a year-on-year increase of 6.7%. The basic materials used in the production of lubricating oil base oils are also indirectly affected to a certain extent.

According to the “Lubricant Base Oil Industry Venture Investment Situation and Investment and Financing Strategy Guidelines Report 2023-2027” released by the Industrial Research Center , with the continuous growth of my country’s lubricant market, the demand for lubricant base oil has been continuously increased. However, due to the impact of the epidemic, the operating rate of my country’s lubricant base oil companies has gradually decreased, resulting in a continuous decline in their output. In 2022, my country’s lubricant base oil production will be 7.514 million tons, a year-on-year decrease of 15.9%. Due to the decline in lubricant base oil production in my country, a large amount of imports are needed to meet market demand. According to data released by the General Administration of Customs, my country’s import volume of lubricating base oil products will reach 1.786 million tons in 2022.

Industry analysts said that foreign lubricant base oil companies mainly include Petroleum Venezuela, Exxon Mobil, Shell, etc., while domestic lubricant base oil companies Base oil companies mainly include Sinopec, Huadong Petrochemical, CNOOC, Conch Petrochemical, Sinochem Yanhua, Ruitai Chemical, etc. Because foreign companies started earlier and have higher product quality, they occupy part of my country’s high-end market share. Domestic enterprises started late and their production technology is relatively backward. They mainly focus on the mid- to low-end market. As my country’s lubricant base oil companies gradually advance in production technology, product quality gradually improves, market share is expected to gradually increase, and domestic substitution is expected to be achieved in the future.