US base oils exports to Europe held firm in a narrow range in March even amid a round of plant maintenance work.Base oils exports of 387,000 barrels (54,500 tonnes) in March edged up from 380,000 barrels the previous month and down from 410,000 barrels in January, government data showed.The US is Europe’s largest overseas supplier of Group II base oils.Exports to Europe held steady in March despite a round of plant maintenance work in the US.The maintenance included work on a plant that is a key source of Group II supplies for Europe.Base oils exports from the district of Mobile, Alabama fell to a twenty-seven-month low in March, reflecting the impact of the maintenance work.Base oils exports from the district of San Francisco by contrast held above the 220,000-barrels level for a third straight month.The last time exports from San Francisco maintained those levels for that long was in mid-2021.The dynamic left shipments from the two districts combined in a relatively narrow range since late-2024 and accounting for more than 72% of the US’ total exports to Europe during that period..The steady flows pointed to the more muted impact on Europe’s Group II supplies caused by plant maintenance in the US compared with plant maintenance work in Europe.The steady flows and Europe’s rangebound Group II supply early this year also contrasted with the region’s more volatile Group I base oils supply.The trend highlighted the diverse sources for Europe’s Group II base oils supply, cushioning the impact of a change in flows from any one of the sources.The dynamic contrasted with Europe’s ongoing reliance on its shrinking regional Group I production capacity for most of its Group I base oils supplies.The trend magnified the impact of a change in supplies from any of its remaining Group I plants. US base oils exports to Europe also held steady even with a sustained wave of surplus shipments from the US in the first quarter of the year.The steady flows to Europe reflected moves to ship the surplus volumes to other markets like West Africa and India, despite lower base oils prices in those markets.The moves instead curbed the size of any supply-build in Europe, where Group II prices rose to an increasingly wide premium to US domestic and export prices in the second quarter of the year..US' March base oils exports stay high.US’ March base oils imports rise
