Azelis debuts the L&MWF segment in East Africa

A zelis Kenya Limited has recently launched a complete range of lubricants and metal working fluids (L&MWF) additives for the East African region. The launch occurred during a two-day Action Africa Lubricants and Base Oils conference held in Nairobi on March 12 and 13, 2024. Azelis senior management, lubricant blenders in East Africa, and Azelis principals attended the conference to discuss the products available for the African market.

Azelis Kenya will distribute products to the East African market from several principals, including Chevron Base Oils, Chevron Oronite, Chevron Phillips Chemical, Evonik Oil Additives, SI Group, SYENSQO, and Ergon International Inc. The product range from these companies will include base oils and additives for engine oils, drivelines, marine, Automatic Transmission Fluids (ATF), passenger car motor oils (PCMOs), heavy-duty, rail, motorcycle oil, hydraulic fluids, and gear oils. Other specialty chemicals that will be available include corrosion inhibitors, metal cleaning and treatment products, viscosity modifiers, pour point depressants, and anti-oxidants.

The senior management team from Azelis, present at the conference, included Chris Sacy, Azelis’s Managing Director of the Middle East and Africa (MEA) region; Siva Konar, Market Segment Manager of L&MWF in MEA; Boston Moonsamy, Managing Director of Azelis South Africa; and Chadi Nassar, Managing Director of Azelis Kenya. Apart from industry players, the United Nations Environment Program (UNEP) and the Kenya Bureau of Standards (KEBS) also attended the conference. They had the opportunity to discuss their respective roles in improving the lubricants industry in Kenya.

On the first day of the conference, Chris Sacy gave a speech introducing Azelis as an innovation service provider to its customers. He talked about the company’s profile and vision and mentioned that after acquiring Orkila and Umongo, Azelis had experienced business growth in the L&MWF segments in Southern Africa, East Africa, and Ghana. This segment accounts for over 30% of MEA business. Chris Sacy further highlighted that Azelis’ global activities in the MEA region are booming, and they have almost quadrupled their business in the last four years. They now have about 3500 customers in MEA. Azelis has been focusing on organic growth, but their acquisitions also represent a strategic driver to grow their business in Africa. Siva Konar added that maintaining strong customer relationships has been a key factor in their suc-cess in Africa. Listening to the customers has helped them offer technology-driven solutions.

Chris Sacy, Azelis’s Managing Director of the Middle East and Africa (MEA) region

. SOURCE | AZELIS

Azelis has experienced a significant business growth in the L&MWF segments in Southern Africa, East Africa, and Ghana, after acquiring Orkila and Umongo. The L&MWF segment accounts for over 30% of MEA business.

Boston Moonsamy, former co-founder and CEO of Umongo and current Managing Director of Azelis South Africa, explained that customers saw the acquisition of Umongo by Azelis as complementary to what they were already offering. Azelis filled the gaps in their product offering, and today they can provide customers a complete suite of products.

UNEP’s representative, Jane Akumu, discussed how UNEP is working on reducing air pollution to promote sustainability in Africa. She also talked about the partnership for the Clean Vehicles program, which supports clean fuels and vehicles. She touched on lubricants’ role in reducing air pollution and sustainability.

KEBS discussed the standards for lubricants. They explained how standards are made and how products are tested. One challenge is that standards are set in place, but implementation is complex. KEBS has a market surveillance directorate and relies on the public to inform them about counterfeits in order to deal with the issue.

Siva Konar gave an overview of the African lubricants market, some of the changes we are witnessing, and the factors driving change. He highlighted that international players still have the lion’s share in the market, but indigenous companies are emerging. Over time, there has been a shift from mono-grade to multi-grade lubricants as demand for higher-quality lubricants is rising. There is also a growing increase in demand for Group II base oils. Some factors driving this change are legislative changes, the reduced age of imported vehicles, and economic growth across Africa.

Some challenges in the market include a lack of proper regulation for the lubricants industry. Importation of substandard goods, shipment challenges, and price differences in different countries are other challenges in the African market. Chris Sacy further reiterated the obstacles in the market and said, “One of the drawbacks we have faced in the African market is that countries vary in culture, and we have adopted different ways of penetrating the market. This has meant we need to be agile and have fit-tomarket products and logistics to support each country. The different currencies in the African countries also pose a challenge, but we are adapting our strategy to be able to serve our customers in the market.”

However, opportunities for growth in the market are still present. Over the next two days, Azelis and its principals demonstrated how they are positioned to meet the needs of the East African lubricants market. Speaking about the prospects of the L&MWF business in Africa, Siva Konar said, “The L&MWF is an exciting and growing segment Azelis is looking forward to expanding in the region. We are launching a full range of cost-effective lubricant additives, top-tier base oils, and other complementary chemicals. Our uniqueness is in innovation through formulation and working with our customers while supporting sustainability initiatives and contributing to the development of the African continent.”

Azelis’s motivation to launch the L&MWF segment in the East African market is the opportunity and growing need for high-quality lubricants. Chadi Nassar, Managing Director of Azelis Kenya, which serves the East African region, said, “The motivation behind introducing L&MWF in Kenya is the need we see in the market. Kenya is proliferating, and we believe in the market’s trajectory. We are evolving with our clients, the market, and the maturity of consumers in East Africa.” Chris Sacy added, “The East African market is quite significant, and apart from Kenya, we hope to expand to other countries in this region and set up local operations to serve those customers better.”

We are launching a full range of cost-effective lubricant additives, top-tier base oils, and other complementary chemicals. Our uniqueness is in innovation through formulation and working with our customers while supporting sustainability initiatives and contributing to the development of the African continent.”

Azelis discussed the support that customers can expect from them. With access to a laboratory dedicated to the L&MWF segment in Milan, Italy, and operating regionally, customers will receive all the support they need. “We assure our customers that they will receive a full range of testing for all lubricant products, supporting them and their customers,” said Siva Konar. Chadi Nassar added, “Our potential customers can expect much support from all levels because we are locally and physically present, and we can connect them with our principals or labs.” Boston Moonsamy augmented, “We offer technical services to our customers, and we are well positioned to help them produce high-performance, top-tier lubricants.”

The supply chain is a big problem in the market; Azelis assures its customers that they do not have to worry about this as Azelis has dedicated teams to take care of their customer’s needs. Siva Konar said, “To cater to the supply chain issue, we have a team in Nairobi, Kenya, and South Africa to ensure our customers are supplied. We offer products from different companies, enabling us to offer a complete package of solutions, our lateral value chain, to our customers to collaborate and ensure the goods they produce are fit for use in the market.” Chadi Nassar emphasized, “Our products are available locally, and we offer fast delivery to our clients; we also make direct shipments where we can link our suppliers to our customers locally.”

Azelis’s Middle East & Africa (MEA) team. SOURCE | AZELIS

Regarding plans and what customers can expect, Azelis is committed to helping its clients grow their businesses and remain market leaders. It will offer technical support to the clientele, and the value proposition is that Azelis is continuously improving its formulations to help the customers improve the quality of their products. In the future, Azelis will look into introducing specialty chemicals, aftermarket fuel additives, and lubricant technology, amongst others.

Azelis Kenya is a subsidiary of Azelis Group NV, a leading global innovation service provider in the specialty chemicals and food ingredients industry. With over 4,200 employees, Azelis is present in 65 countries worldwide and operates in Life Sciences and Industrial Chemicals.

Azelis Kenya also services Burundi, Rwanda, Tanzania, and Uganda. In Africa, Azelis made its inroads by acquiring Orkila in 2020. Orkila was a specialty chemicals and food ingredients distributor throughout Africa and the Middle East.

Azelis Kenya also services Burundi, Rwanda, Tanzania, and Uganda. In Africa, Azelis made its inroads by acquiring Orkila in 2020. Orkila was a specialty chemicals and food ingredients distributor throughout Africa and the Middle East. Headquartered in Beirut, Lebanon, the Orkila group had offices in 13 countries and was active in more than 30 countries in the region, including Kenya.

The acquisition created a unique combination of Azelis’ innovation and formulation potential and international reach with Orkila’s strong local presence, regional expertise, and excellent reputation.

In 2022, Azelis acquired Umongo, a major player in the Southern African lubricants market, to further expand its African footprint. Umongo was a major supplier and service provider to the lubricant industry across Sub-Saharan Africa, providing technical support and solutions. The acquisition of Umongo in January 2022 strengthened Azelis’ foothold in industrial specialty chemicals in South Africa and Sub-Saharan Africa. Azelis South Africa, formerly Umongo, services Angola, Botswana, Lesotho, Malawi, Mozambique, Namibia, Swaziland, Zambia, and Zimbabwe. .