Gulf Oil setting up plant in Chennai

The company is setting up a 75,000-kilo litre capacity plant at a cost of about Rs 120 cr

Gulf Oil Lubricants India Limited (GOLIL), part of the Hinduja group, is setting up a 75,000-KL capacity plant in Chennai at a cost of about Rs 120 crore. It is also expanding the capacity of its existing plant at Silvassa in Dadra and Nager Haveli from 75,000 KL to 90,000 KL.

GOLIL, the lubricant division of Hyderabad-based Gulf Oil Corporation Limited (GOCL), has been demerged and listed on the BSE and NSE recently. The revenue of GOLIL in 2013-14 stood at Rs 1,017 crore.

According to Gulf Oil International chairman Sanjay G Hinduja and GOLIL managing director Ravi Chawla, the lubricant business has reached the size and scale to take up its future in a more focused manner independently. Hence, GOLIL will manage the standalone lubricant business in India under Gulf Oil brand.

They said that all business segments of GOCL have been managed as separate business segments and operations of the lubricants business does not affect in any way on account of the demerger.

In an e-mail response to Business Standard queries, they said GOLIL focus had been to consolidate its strength in the DEO (diesel engine oil) segment and to increase market share in motorcycle and car segments as well. The company was also constantly looking for tie-ups with new OEMs (original equipment manufacturers).

Chawla said the lubricants business had attained a combined annual growth rate of about 15 per cent in revenues and 42 per cent in profits over the last six years. With the demerger, the company has plans expand its current 7 per cent market share in the open market.