Russia: Total opens its new state-of-the-art lubricants oil blending and production plant in Kaluga

Moscow, October 15, 2018 - Total has inaugurated its new state-of-the-art lubricants oil blending plant, strategically located in the Kaluga region of the Russian Federation. The grand opening ceremony took place today, October 15th, in the presence of Anatoly Artamonov, Governor of the Kaluga Region, and Patrick Pouyanné, Chairman and CEO of Total.

This blending and production plant will allow Total to localize the production of its top-tier lubricants for the Russian market. With an investment equivalent to $ 50 million, this facility has been designed to produce initially 40,000 tons of automotive and industrial lubricants per year, with a scale-up option to bring this capacity up to 70,000 tons per year.

Managed by Total Vostok, subsidiary of the Group in Russia, the plant is equipped with a fully automated blending system and ultramodern filling lines. Covering an area of 7 hectares of the Vorsino industrial park in the Kaluga region, this facility opens less than two years after the start of construction. Its operations are creating 50 new working positions onsite.

"As illustrated by our commitment to major LNG projects, Russia has become a key country for Total. In addition to our upstream activities, Russia is also one of the highest priority development markets for our downstream products, especially lubricants" underlined Patrick Pouyanné, Chairman and CEO of Total. "As a leading global manufacturer and marketer of engine oils and lubricants, we are confident that this brand new plant will strengthen our position in the local and regional lubricants markets. With this production & blending facility opening in Kaluga today, we are showing our strong dedication to our Russian customers.”

"The opening of the Total Vostok factory once again confirms the economic and investment attractiveness of the Kaluga region for international partners.” commented Anatoly Artamonov, Governor of the Kaluga region. “We aspire to provide the best conditions for companies which understand the importance of production localization in Russia, develop the import substitution policy and take care about the environment by creating ecologically safe production plants. The Government of the region is ready to support them in such important and long-term projects".

A full range of locally-produced Lubricants

2018 marks the 10th anniversary of Total Vostok's operations in Russia. With the launch of this local production unit, Total Vostok plans to become one of the top leaders in the segment of premium automotive and industrial lubricants in the Russian market, and a major player among competitors established locally.

This new plant will produce the entire range of Total and Elf lubricants products including:

• “Total Quartz” for passenger cars,
• “Total Rubia” for commercial vehicles,
• A full range of industrial oils,
• The “Fuel Economy” lubricants line, which allows both commercial and passenger vehicles as well as off-road vehicles to significantly reduce their fuel consumption.

Total is committed to the highest international safety and environmental standards, which have been fundamental components throughout the construction and start of operations of this new facility. The plant laboratory is equipped with modern apparatus and is following strict international standards. The highest quality controls will be applied to raw materials and finished products.

In addition to the Russian market, Total Vostok also plans to ship products to a number of countries in Central Asia and to Belarus. With the start of this local production, consumer companies in the region will benefit from several advantages: a reduced dependence on imports, a significant decrease in both production and delivery times and an optimization of logistics and storage costs for the final products.

About Total Vostok

Total Vostok , subsidiary of the Marketing & Services Division of Total, is supplying automotive lubricants of Total and Elf brands, a wide range of industrial lubricants, as well as special fluids, fuel additives and special fuels to the Russian market. In addition to the extensive distribution network, stretching from Kaliningrad to Vladivostok, Total Vostok has branches in Moscow, St. Petersburg, Rostov-on-Don, Yekaterinburg and Kazan. www.total-lub.ru