Shell Lubricants has retained its global market leading position in 2015 with 11.6% market share, according to Kline & Company’s Global Lubricants Industry: Market Analysis and Assessment 2016 report. This is the tenth consecutive year that Shell Lubricants has been named the number one global lubricants supplier.
Product sales estimates by Kline & Company indicate that Shell sold between 4,400 – 4,600 kilotonnes of finished lubricants in 2015 – 36% in consumer automotive, 34% in industrial and 30% in commercial automotive sectors.
John Abbott, Shell Downstream Director, said: “In an environment where competition continues to be tough, this is a tremendous achievement for the Shell Lubricants business. Our success has been underpinned by our customer-focused approach, continuous product innovation, advanced technical services offer and a strong team. We have also consistently invested in upgrading and growing our world-class supply chain, to align with demand in emerging markets. Our future focus will continue to build on close customer and industry collaborations. These will deliver innovative and integrated product and service solutions to meet changing customer needs and opportunities that the energy transition brings.”
The Kline & Company report further states that Shell Lubricants is the market leader in Philippines (30%), Malaysia (27%), United Kingdom (18%) and United States (12%). Shell Lubricants is also the market leading international oil company in South Africa (20%), Thailand (18%), Canada (13%) and China (8%). With Shell Lubricants growing globally, India has also made its mark by being one of the fastest growing markets in 2016.
Commenting on the growth of business in India, Mansi Tripathy, Country Head, Shell Lubricants India cluster said, “We are proud of this feat achieved by Shell Lubricants, and are happy that the Indian market has contributed significantly to the same. The growth of Shell Lubricants in India is underpinned by our strong commitment towards technological innovation and customer partnerships, and a zeal to add value to our customers’ operations through tangible end-to-end solutions. This recognition is a testimony to our world-class products and services, and the way we are contributing towards growth of the lubricants industry in India. We expect our business to grow and diversify in the coming years, and are excited to leverage the host of opportunities offered by the Indian market across sectors.”
George Morvey, Industry Manager, Energy at Kline said: “Global lubricants reached 38.8 million tonnes in 2015, down from 39.4 million tonnes in 2014. Outside of India, the other BRICs[1] did not grow, which contributed to the global decline. Despite a generally flat market and growing competition from national oil companies, independents, and OEM genuine products, Shell has managed to defend its positions in all three market segments and retain its leading market share.”
To cater to growing demand, Shell invested hundreds of millions of dollars in its lubricants supply chain, upgrading three lubricant blending plants, building four new lubricant blending plants, constructing one new grease manufacturing plant and one new Group II base oil manufacturing plant[2].
Shell Lubricants was the market leader in the passenger vehicle sector in United States (22%), Philippines (32%), Malaysia (31%), Canada (19%) and China (14%). Pioneering Gas-To-Liquid (GTL) technology based premium passenger car oils, manufactured from natural gas, have been one of the key drivers for success. Since the 2014 launch, the Shell Helix Ultra with PurePlus Technology[3] products have seen double-digit growth and are available in over 100 markets around the world. Additionally, premium penetration of Pennzoil Platinum since 2012 increased 155% in North America, boosted by Shell PurePlus Technology[4]. These products have also pushed the boundaries of performance on the extreme test bed of various motorsport racetracks around the world.
Shell is currently also the preferred passenger car oil brand in China, United States, Malaysia and Thailand; preferred motorcycle oil brand in Malaysia and Philippines; and preferred heavy duty oil for truck brands in China, Egypt, Russia and United States[5].
Shell has also built successful commercial relationships with key global original equipment manufacturers (OEMs) including BMW AG, Fiat Chrysler Automobiles (FCA) Group, Hyundai, Renault-Nissan, Toyota, General Motors, Daimler AG, Suzuki, Ducati, MAN, ZF, General Electric, Aggreko, Siemens and various Chinese OEMs including Geely & FAW.
Additionally, Shell provides lubricant solutions for a variety of industrial machinery including wind turbines, heavy-duty mining equipment and manufacturing machinery. In the industrial lubricant sector, Shell is a market leader in Philippines (29%), Thailand (24%), Malaysia (20%) and United Kingdom (18%). In the commercial vehicle sector, Shell leads in Malaysia (31%), Canada (20%) and United States (18%). Shell Lubricants has also documented over hundred million dollars in cost savings from the use of value-adding Shell technical services for a selection of industrial customers. These services help customers choose, use, maintain and monitor lubricant applications in their equipment. Shell’s latest service offer is Virtual Assistant, an artificial intelligence powered one-stop-shop for lubricants related questions.
