Italy’s March base oils output stays low

Italy’s base oils output stayed unusually low in March, reflecting the impact of the prolonged shutdown of one of the country’s key base oil plants.

Base oils output of 42,160t in March rose from 37,200t the previous month, government data showed.

The March volume was still the second lowest since mid-2019. The lowest since then was in February.

The sustained slide in the country’s base oils output since last November dragged down total production to 126,980t in the first three months of this year.

The volume was down 29pc from the previous quarter and the lowest quarterly volume in more than seven years.

Italy’s base oils production has stayed unusually low because of the extended shutdown of a key Group I base oil unit in the country.

Maintenance work at the unit had been scheduled to end last December. But the unit suffered a fire during the shutdown, delaying its restart until at least the middle of this year.

The fall in base oils output has coincided with a seasonal rise in demand for Group I base oils and the unexpected drop in exports of Russian base oils.

Regional availability of Group I base oils has tightened in response and triggered a surge in prices.