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UKLA President’s Report


Recent discussions in the European Union Economic Tariff Question Committee on whether to extend the current temporary external tariff alleviation of 3.7% on Group II base oils have raised some interesting questions about matching supply and demand for Group II within the EU.


Group II is now very firmly established in the automotive sector as a key “tool” for providing lower viscosity products and achieving lower emissions, and it continues to grow strongly, especially reinforced by the ACEA 2016 guidelines. And the benefits of these more advanced Group II base oils are also being realised in the industrial and metalworking sector as a driver of improved product performance.


This raises the question about how the fast-growing demand will be met for these advanced base oils in the European Union. Earlier this year, ExxonMobil’s Rotterdam new unit came on stream with the potential to produce an estimated 1 million tonnes of Group II each year.


UEIL President’s Report


This is an important month for the EU, with European Parliament elections taking place on 23-26 May, the results of which will shape the EU Institutions, as well as the EU’s agenda, for the next five years.


The outcome of the elections will be of great importance for the lubricant industry. With the European Parliament likely to change significantly from the 2014-2019 mandate, UEIL will need to reach out to future Members of the European Parliament (MEPs), and our communications at the start of the mandate will largely dictate the success of our interactions with European stakeholders. Moreover, a change in power balance may lead to a complex constellation of forces, with more ad hoc coalitions across traditional party divides, which may in turn reduce the Parliament’s legislative efficiency.


Independently of the future political landscape of the European institutions, it seems evident that climate and environment policies, as well as the Circular Economy and sustainability more generally, will be among the top priorities in Brussels in the coming


4 LUBE MAGAZINE NO.151 JUNE 2019


Depending on which market estimates you consider, the existing demand for Group II in Europe could already be as high as 1.8 million tonnes with the potential to rise to 2.4 million tonnes per year in the near future. Supporting domestic supply in the region is a key aim of EU regulators in encouraging the European countries to become self-sufficient in product components. However this should be balanced by the need to have very high confidence that the region’s supply can actually be met from EU domestic sources alone, not only now but also for the foreseeable future, as demand is predicted to continue growing strongly.


This is the challenge: avoiding a situation of having supply shortages, price premiums and ultimately disadvantaged end-users must be a priority as we move towards this new world of greater European self-sufficiency.


David Hopkinson, UKLA President


five years. All political parties have put a greater emphasis on environmental issues within their manifestos and are willing to give a renewed impetus to sustainable growth, as well as to the implementation of the sustainable development goals.


The significant interest that the newly-formed UEIL Sustainability Taskforce has raised among all members is a clear indication that sustainability is also an important topic for our industry, and also demonstrates that UEIL members want to take an active role in defining how our industry is contributing - and can further contribute - to sustainable development. The Circular Economy and sustainability will be extensively discussed during a dedicated session of the 2019 UEIL Annual Congress in Cannes, France, from 23-25 October 2019.


I look forward to discussing this and other topics at the Congress in Cannes!


Valentina Serra-Holm, UEIL President


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