Construction of joint-venture oil plant completed in Spain

SK Lubricants said Tuesday that a lube base oils plant that was under construction by Iberian Lube Base Oils Company, a joint venture established by SK and Repsol, has been completed.

Based in Cartagena, Spain, the plant was built with a total investment of 470 billion won, and construction started in October 2012. SK contributed 70 percent of the cost, and the Spanish company paid the rest.

It will be Europe’s biggest lube base oils plant with a total production capacity of 630,000 tons per year. Lube base oil is a raw material of lubricant.

The company said the joint venture was one of SK Group Chairman Chey Tae-won’s “global partnering” strategies that aims to expand the group’s distribution networks worldwide by cooperating with global businesses.

At the ribbon-cutting ceremony in Spain, Chey said, “SK will try to find more new business opportunities in many sectors, including petroleum and energy.”