Eterna Plc partners Castrol to blend world leading lubricant brands

A leading indigenous oil and gas company in Nigeria, Eterna Plc is in partnership with a leading global brand in lubricants, Castrol to blend Castrol lubricants in Nigeria. The partnership is aimed at bringing to consumers best blends of lubricants in Nigeria.

Speaking during the launch at the weekend, the Managing Director of Eterna Plc, Muhammad Tukur, stated that the journey began as far back as 1991 through the vision of the company’s founder, Chief Tunji Lawal Solarin,  when Eterna started importing and distributing Castrol Lubricants in Nigeria.

“A robust marketing structure was set up and with increased market sales, Eterna began to manufacture lubricants locally through a third-party facility on an interim basis.

“The aim was always for the company to own its blending facility and this dream became a reality when Eterna secured $940,000 loan from the International Finance Corporation (IFC) in 1995 to construct what was to eventually become one of the best and most modern lubricant manufacturing plants in Africa. Castrol designed the plant and provided the required technical support during construction that the plant met global standards,” he said.

He stated further that 20 years later, Eterna’s 15,000MT capacity state-of-the-art lubricant manufacturing plant, which is fully owned through its subsidiary Eterna Industries Limited, is one of the only three Castrol accredited blending plants in Africa. He said the plant is located in Sagamu, Ogun State on a sprawling five hectares of prime industrial real estate.

“I am pleased to report that Eterna’s Laboratory has continued to retain its global rating and is currently pursuing its ISO 17025 certification.

“The overall activities of the blending plant are supervised by Castrol’s global manufacturing and technology teams, ensuring that our staff are exposed to the latest manufacturing and testing methods, resulting in the highest quality manufactured lubricants.

“I am proud to announce that the latest addition to the Castrol GTX family: ‘Castrol GTX Essential’ was produced for the first time in the world at our plant in Sagamu this August. This is a clear demonstration of the confidence reposed in our manufacturing capabilities by Castrol.

“Castrol GTX Essential was developed in response to specific market requirements in Nigeria/Africa (and other regions with similar climatic conditions) and is an example of how globally developed technology is brought to bear in ways that address local conditions, meet engine manufacturers’ specifications whilst remaining affordable and cost effective.

“Between 2009 and 2015 post the acquisition of Castrol by BP, Eterna was majorly active in the Marine and Energy sectors, providing premium lubricants to tanker vessels, supply vessels, port operators, FPSOs and drilling rigs,” he said.

“In 2015, we commenced further discussions with Castrol to extend our licencing rights to cover the Automotive and Industrial Sectors, culminating in the signing of a sole distributorship agreement in February 2017 for the Automotive and Industrial range of Lubricants for the Nigerian Market,” he said.

Eterna Plc is the only company licenced to manufacture and distribute all Castrol products in Nigeria and are duty bound to protect all the inherent intellectual property rights.

Some of the Castrol products being launched into the market include: Castrol Edge, a fully synthetic oil with Fluid Strength Technology; Castrol Magnatec, semi-synthetic oil Instant protection from the start and Castrol GTX Essential which is trusted protection for the engine.

“Over the next few months we will be rolling out sales points nationwide, appointing distributors in strategic markets, partnering with independent retailers and constructing our own mega stations in key cities including Abuja and Calabar.

“Eterna PLC is the first fully indigenous oil marketing company to be listed on the floor of the Nigeria Stock Exchange (NSE). Despite all the challenges it has faced, the company has come out stronger, its balance sheet is very healthy and we are now poised to deliver exceptional value to our shareholders, staff, distributors and partners.

“We are extremely proud of our partnership with the inventors of ‘Lubrication’ Castrol, a company which had been in the business for more than 100 years and continues to be a global leader,” he said.