Wayne, New Jersey- Today, Castrol®, the global lubricant brand, is announcing the launch of ‘Castrol MoreCircular’, designed to reduce the carbon footprint1 of business lubricants in the United States (US). ‘Castrol MoreCircular’ encompasses the entire process of collecting used oil from business customers, re-refining it and integrating re-refined base oil into premium lubricants for supply to businesses.
‘Castrol MoreCircular’ has been created in collaboration with Safety-Kleen, an environmental services subsidiary of Clean Harbors Inc. Following successful market trials, Safety-Kleen and Castrol signed a multi-year collaboration agreement. Financial terms of the partnership were not disclosed. The ‘Castrol MoreCircular’ Program will officially launch on May 20, 2024, at the Advanced Clean Transportation Expo in Las Vegas, NV.
The ‘Castrol MoreCircular’ offer combines Castrol’s cutting-edge lubricant technology with Safety-Kleen’s wide geographic reach and expertise in collecting and re-refining used oil. It is a result of significant investment in research and development aimed at integrating re-refined base oils into lubricant formulations while ensuring that the new product range continues to meet or exceed the latest original equipment manufacturer (OEM) and industry standards. Successful trials with a number of Castrol business customers demonstrated the high-quality, high-performance attributes of these lower carbon footprint1 lubricants, which showed the same performance as the version containing virgin base oil.
The end-to-end offer begins with the collection of used lubricants from ‘Castrol MoreCircular’ customers such as fleet maintenance shops and industrial sites. The used oil is then re-processed, enabling around 70% of it to be recovered as base oil. Re-refined base oil is combined with Castrol’s cutting-edge technology to blend premium lubricants, resulting in an estimated 20-40%2 lower carbon footprint compared to Castrol’s traditional products. Re-refined base oil makes up at least 65% of the base oil in each MoreCircular lubricant; the size of the carbon footprint reduction depends partly on the percentage of RRBO used. When participating business customers purchase these lubricants, they help develop a more circular lubricants industry in the United States.
Of the more than one billion gallons of used oil generated annually in the United States, only around 20%2 are currently re-refined back to base oils. With the launch of ‘MoreCircular,’ Castrol is moving towards embracing circularity – a key principle of Castrol’s PATH360 sustainability strategy.
“Our ability to collect used oil from across the country and reprocess a waste product means that much of it can be used again and again.3 Delivering these lower-carbon-footprint lubricants can help our business customers meet their sustainability goals with the same high-quality and high-performance they expect from Castrol,” said Andreas Osbar, CEO Castrol Americas. “We believe the time is right to lead the market with an integrated more circular – and as a result, lower-carbon-footprint - offer as our business customers are searching for levers to help de-carbonize their operations. This is a first-of-its kind, nationwide offer in the US and we’re excited to partner with Safety-Kleen to deliver it.”
“Safety-Kleen is proud to partner with Castrol, a recognized industry leader, to help to bring increased circularity to the United States lubricants industry,” said Brian Weber, President of Safety-Kleen Sustainability Solutions, a segment of Clean Harbors, Inc. “We are North America’s largest collector of used oil with more than 200 branch locations that safely and compliantly collect more than 250 million gallons annually. Our operations span across every major metropolitan area in the U.S. and we can meet the waste oil collection needs of any customer of Castrol’s ‘MoreCircular’ offering”.
The key advantages of the ‘Castrol MoreCircular’ business offer include:
- Lower-carbon-footprint lubricants2
- Proven Castrol high performance and quality
- Responsible collection from anywhere in the Continental US4
- One-stop-shop solution for lubricant supply and collection
Notes to Editors
- These lubricants achieve a lower carbon footprint by using re-refined base oils in place of some or all of the virgin base oils traditionally present in Castrol lubricants, resulting in lower cradle to gate production emissions.
- Cradle-to-gate lifecycle carbon intensities, including the estimated 20-40% reduction referred to above, have been estimated and assessed by independent carbon footprinting consultancy Environmental Resources Management (ERM). ERM has confirmed that all estimates and assessments conducted by ERM are carried out in accordance with the Greenhouse Gas Protocol Product Life Cycle Accounting & Reporting Standard. Emissions factors used for both re-refined and virgin base oils are proxy values supplied by ERM.
- Kline Global Used Oil and Re-refined Lubricants: Market Analysis and Opportunities, February 2024; base year: 2022 and 2023
- While used oil can theoretically be re-refined many times, there are some yield losses in the re-refining process, with each re-refining process typically converting around 70% of the used oil back to base oil.
- Some used oil cannot be re-refined, either due to contamination or re-refining proximity. In Safety-Kleen’s experience, ninety-five percent (95%) of used oil it collects is re-refined.
For further information, please contact: CastrolMoreCircular@castrol.com
About Castrol
Castrol, one of the world’s leading lubricant brands, has a proud heritage of innovation and fueling the dreams of pioneers. Our passion for performance, combined with a philosophy of working in partnership, has enabled Castrol to develop lubricants and greases that have been at the heart of numerous technological feats on land, air, sea, and space for over 125 years.
Today, Castrol is helping the focus on sustainability through our PATH360 strategy that sets out aims for 2030 to help save waste, reduce carbon, and improve lives.
Castrol serves customers and consumers in the automotive, marine, industrial and energy sectors. Our branded products are recognized globally for innovation and high performance through our commitment to premium quality and cutting-edge technology. For more information about Castrol, please visit: www.castrol.com
About Clean Harbors/Safety-Kleen
Clean Harbors (NYSE: CLH) is North America’s leading provider of environmental and industrial services. The Company serves a diverse customer base, including a majority of Fortune 500 companies. Its customer base spans a number of industries, including chemical, manufacturing and refining, as well as numerous government agencies. These customers rely on Clean Harbors to deliver a broad range of services such as end-to-end hazardous waste management, emergency spill response, industrial cleaning and maintenance, and recycling services. Through its Safety-Kleen subsidiary, Clean Harbors also is a leading provider of parts washers and environmental services to commercial, industrial and automotive customers, as well as North America’s largest re-refiner and recycler of used oil. Founded in 1980 and based in Massachusetts, Clean Harbors operates in the United States, Canada, Mexico, Puerto Rico and India. For more information, visit www.cleanharbors.com