As demand increases, the gap between international and domestic brands is narrowing.
According to Xu Jian, Marketing Director at Great Wall Lubricants, demand for lubricants products in China rose steadily to 7.5 million tons last year. The increase in demand is due largely to China's rapidly expanding car parc, as well as a modest uptick in industrial output.
As demand increases, creating lubricants products that meet not only provincial but also national standards is becoming increasingly complex. Xu believes that the complicated landscape of specifications could prove advantageous to local producers and may be narrowing the gap between domestic and international companies.
Great Wall Lubes has already forged ties with 90% of the mainstream car companies in China, which together account for just over 65% of the market total. Working closely with local OEMs and dealers when competing for the premium lubes segment is vitally important, claims Xu.
According to Great Wall data, global lubes demand hit 39.6 million tons in 2013 and is slated to rise to 41.7 million tons by the end 0f 2015. Last year, the world's top 15 lubricants companies, of which Great Wall lubes is one, accounted for over 60% of total production.