Once again, the globally active lubricants producer FUCHS PETROLUB AG in Mannheim managed to make strategic use of the liberalization of the south-east Asian markets and to build a new plant for the production of automotive and industrial lubricants in Indonesia. Indonesia has the world's fourth-largest population with 230 million inhabitants and shows a growing demand for lubricants of presently 600,000 tons per year (for comparison: Germany has an annual demand of 1.1 million tons). As early as in 1986, FUCHS PETROLUB was for example the first foreign company to begin producing lubricants in China.
With the inauguration of the new plant in Jakarta the FUCHS group further expands its net of production sites, now comprising 13 lubricants production plants in the Asia-Pacific region. PT FUCHS INDONESIA achieved € 8.8 million sales last year with almost 50 employees. FUCHS PETROLUB plans to use the strategic advantage to increase its market share in Indonesia to 5 %. Until two years ago it was only possible to import specialty lubes. In 2001, however, the government deregulated the lubricant industry and thus ended the state-owned monopoly for the lubricants production.
Dr. Michel Behar, Member of the Executive Committee and responsible for the Asia-Pacific region, sees great possibilities to further penetrate the Indonesian lubricants market: "We have used our operating flexibility and know-how in lubricants to be the first foreign lubricants company that can prove its technology, its high standard of service and customer-orientation in a free and competitive market. The demand for higher quality lubricants in Indonesia is growing and is making up for lost time due to the political crises in the past years." Not only the dominant product sector of automotive lubricants is expected to grow but also the significance of high-quality industrial lubricants will increase. On Borneo for example, a large mining company is one of the major industrial customers of FUCHS.
FUCHS PETROLUB being the world largest independent lubricants company currently employs more than 4,100 people and reached a sales volume of € 1.06 bn last year.
Mannheim, January 22, 2003
FUCHS PETROLUB AG
Public Relations
Friesenheimer Str. 17
D-68169 Mannheim
Tel.: +49 621 38 02-104