Nawaloka enters lubricant market

By Sunimalee Dias

Nawaloka ABC Petroleum has entered the Rs. 11 billion lubricant market in partnership with Total whose products will be marketed via 250 outlets.

Total oil is the French multinational oil company operating over 130 countries with over 96,000 employees worldwide and an annual revenue exceeding 150 billion Euros.

This is being carried out as part of the Nawaloka Holdings’ diversification strategy.

“The total value of the local lubricant market is approximately Rs.11 billion and it is now a growing market though it was stagnant for a while,” Nawaloka Chairman Jayantha Dharmadasa said at the media briefing.

Currently Nawaloka has introduced two product lines under the brands of Total and Elf. The four wheeler segment of cars, trucks, buses and other off road vehicles will have a range of products marketed under the brand name Total while the products catering to the two and three wheeler segment will be sold under the brand name Elf. The lubricants are being imported from Total’s regional offices in India and Singapore, the company’s General Manager Sanjay Benjamin said.

Moving into a performance driven market, he noted however, they were capable of competing price wise as well.

The lubricant market in the country is currently witnessing a 6-7% growth while the automotive lubricants is growing at about 5%. The total consumption in the local market amounts to 45000 MT.

Currently Nawaloka has tied up for lubricants but would look at other options as well in the future.

Further it was pointed out that with the North and East market now opening up they have already commenced operations in the East and later move up further.

Nawaloka kicked off with Total in May 2010 while selling having commenced by September.

It was noted that by the end of this year the company would be able to cover most parts of the country.

When queried of any interest in entering the oil exploration sector, it was noted that they may do so if Total would be interested but “it will take time”, Dharmadasa said.

Total is the number one refiner in Europe with a capacity of 2.7 million barrels per day, while the volume of refined products sold is 3.8 million barrels per day.

Total has a complete range of lubricants covering all segments of automotive and industrial applications and Nawaloka ABC Petroleum is confident that the local consumer will appreciate the benefits of a world class lubricant.

The target market is the quality conscious motorist with a sense of social responsibility who wishes to contribute towards protecting the environment.

Total has an exclusive tie-up with Peugeot/Citroen and Renault, whilst having close associations with several other vehicle manufacturers. Total has the approvals of major commercial vehicle manufacturers such as MAN, Volvo, Leyland, Cummins, Caterpillar, New Holland and Mercedes Benz amongst others. Total Oil is also supplied as the factory fill to many vehicle manufacturers and as a preferred choice in after market lubricant supplies.