Shell recently opened its newest grease plant in Zhuhai, China, which will make a range of lithium, lithium-calcium and lithium-complex greases used mainly in passenger cars and industrial bearing lubrication.
The plant, which is Shell's largest and 18th worldwide, has a production capacity of 30,000 tons of greases a year, with the potential to be expanded to 40,000 tons a year. It is primarily designed to meet China's growing demand for greases.
"By building Shell's largest grease plant in China, we are able to be closer to our customers," said Huibert Vigeveno, executive chairman of Shell Companies in China. "China's lubricants demand, including that for grease, is growing fast, and we are committed to meeting our customers' needs and serving them well."
The plant will consist of a workshop with four production lines, grease-processing equipment, plant-control system, pack-filling lines, laboratory equipment and other associated facilities. It will also have a warehouse for storage of packed raw materials, packaging and finished products, bulk additive and base oil tanks, bulk finished product tanks and truck-unloading facilities.
The plant's opening follows on the heels of a series of Shell lubricant supply-chain investments. In the same complex in 2009, Shell opened its largest (by volume) operating lubricant-blending plant in Asia to supply southern China with mainstream lubricant products. In 2011, Shell opened a state-of-the-art lubricant technical service center to provide technical, marketing and training support to lubricant customers and equipment manufacturers.
Elsewhere in China, Shell has announced plans to build one of its largest lubricant-blending plants near Beijing.
For more information, visit www.shell.com.