GP Petroleums Ltd, a subsidiary of United Arab Emirates-based Gulf Petrochem group, today launched a range of Repsol lubricants in India. Last year, the company had announced its partnership with Repsol, Spain’s leading petroleum company, to exclusively manufacture and sell the latter’s comprehensive line of lubricants in the country.
The range of motor oils include Repsol Moto for two-wheelers, Repsol Elite for passenger cars, and Repsol Diesel for heavy-duty vehicles. The lubricants for two-wheelers and passenger cars will go on sale by end-April, and the entire range will be available by May 15, 2016. The company is, however, initially focusing on expanding its sales in the two-wheeler segment in India.
Moreover, GP Petroleums also plans to supply Repsol range of lubricants to automakers such as Honda, Maruti Suzuki and Tata Motors in India and will soon start negotiations with them.
“We will soon start discussions with carmakers such as Tata Motors, Honda and Suzuki in India to supply the Repsol range of lubricants. The fact that Tata Motors and Suzuki are already associated with Repsol in Spain, while Honda is working with Repsol in Indonesia will be quite helpful,” Thangapandian Srinivasalu, executive director, Gulf Petrochem, told Autocar India.
The company’s plans to set up a new Rs 100-120 crore production facility in Pipavav, Gujarat have been put on hold for atleast two years since they have ramped up capacity at their plant in Vasai near Mumbai, Srinivasalu said.
GP Petroleums already has a presence in the industrial lubricants space in India with its flagship brand IPOL, and Repsol will be banking on the same to market its range of lubricants for the automotive segment in the country. Besides, GP Petroleums also has a manufacturing facility in Daman which could be utilised in manufacturing Repsol’s range of lubricants.
Repsol is famous for its association with the Honda MotoGP team. In 2014, Repsol extended its sponsorship deal with the team and will remain its title sponsor until the 2017 season. The Repsol-Honda MotoGP association has been in place since 1995, making it the longest running deal in the history of premier-class motorcycle racing.
India is the third-largest market for lubricants in the world after US and China. Around 58 percent of the same is contributed by automotive segments in different spaces.