Specialty chemicals company LANXESS and Bharat Petroleum Corporation Limited (BPCL), one of India’s leading integrated energy companies, signed a Memorandum of Understanding (MoU) to explore long-term cooperation in advanced industrial lubricants, specialty fluid technologies and related applications in India. The agreement was signed between LANXESS India Private Limited and BPCL. The proposed partnership aims to develop innovative lubricant solutions, strengthen product localization, support original equipment manufacturer (OEM) approvals and deliver long-term value to customers across India’s industrial sectors.
Collaboration to Develop High-Performance Lubricants
Under the MoU, LANXESS and BPCL will explore opportunities to develop, evaluate, qualify and commercialize advanced industrial lubricants, additive technologies and specialty products.
Key areas of potential collaboration include:
High-performance bearing and circulating oils
Premium hydraulic fluids and turbine oils
Refrigeration lubricants and rust preventive oils
Specialty greases and industrial additive packages
Immersion cooling fluids for data centres
Environmentally acceptable lubricants
Lubricant solutions for emerging industrial technologies
Through these initiatives, both companies aim to address evolving industrial requirements while supporting the development of high-performance lubrication technologies.
Combining Global Expertise with Domestic Market Reach
The collaboration will bring together LANXESS’s global expertise in lubricant additives, formulation capabilities and OEM relationships with BPCL’s domestic market presence, base oil portfolio, manufacturing infrastructure and extensive customer network. Furthermore, the companies will explore product localization, joint technical evaluations, field trials, OEM engagement, knowledge exchange and future commercialization opportunities. These initiatives will remain subject to applicable approvals and definitive agreements.
Exploring Sustainable and Next-Generation Technologies
As per the press release, beyond conventional industrial lubricants, the partnership will also evaluate opportunities in emerging and sustainable technologies. Potential areas include bio-based lubricants, electric vehicle (EV) fluids, hydrogen economy applications, specialty refrigeration fluids, personal care ingredients and immersion cooling solutions for data centres. These technologies could support evolving performance, sustainability and cooling requirements across industrial and digital infrastructure applications.
LANXESS Highlights Customer-Focused Innovation
Karam Faddoul, Head of Sales IMEA, Business Unit Lubricant Additives, LANXESS, said the collaboration would help bring localized, high-performance lubricant solutions closer to Indian customers while supporting their growth through greater speed and reliability. Neelanjan Banerjee, Senior Vice President and Global Head of the Business Unit Lubricant Additives, LANXESS, described the MoU as an important step towards strengthening cooperation between the two companies.
He emphasized that combining LANXESS’s global technology platform, formulation expertise and OEM engagement capabilities with BPCL’s manufacturing strength and market presence could accelerate the development and commercialization of high-performance lubricant solutions for Indian industry.
BPCL Lubes R&D Emphasizes Joint Research and Development
Kannan S, Business Head, BPCL, highlighted the importance of collaboration between LANXESS and BPCL’s Lubes Research and Development (R&D) team in advancing lubricant technologies through joint research, innovation and development. He noted that combining LANXESS’s global expertise in lubricant additives and formulation technologies with BPCL Lubes R&D’s application knowledge, technical capabilities and understanding of Indian customer requirements would help address current industrial needs and emerging technological challenges. According to him, the complementary partnership could strengthen both companies’ capabilities, accelerate technology development and enable them to deliver differentiated, high-performance and future-ready lubricant solutions for evolving industrial applications.
