French oil giant TotalEnergies announced on Monday that it has bought a motor oil recycler in Hamina STR Tecoilin.
Total estimates that the Finnish company’s technology is “the most efficient and best on the market”. Thanks to it, lubricant factories have access to very high quality recycled base oil.
CEO of STR Tecoil Juha Kokko tells Kauppalehti that the ongoing green transition piqued Total’s interest. Since Total produces massive amounts of lubricants, it wants to be involved in the recycling of base oils.
“Finnish excellence is of interest to the world. We are the number one in Europe in terms of the quality we produce, and no one can make a product as good as us,” says Kokko.
The company that collects waste oil and regenerates it says that engine oils, gear oils, stern oils, hydraulic oils, marine engine oils, circulating lubrication oils, compressor oils, turbine oils and transmission oils are all suitable for recycling.
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STR Tecoil
The company from Hamina refines motor oil used in vehicles and lubricants for industrial equipment into usable lubricating oil again.
Thanks to the technology it has developed, the lubricating oil is not a single-use product, but can be recycled and used countless times.
The success rate of STR Tecoil’s regeneration process is about 75. That’s how much new, usable base oil is produced. That’s a very high yield figure.
STR Tecoil, which has been operating for about ten years, was fully owned by the Finn Mihail Malkov. TotalEnergies is the company’s new owner.
The purchase price is “considerable”
The parties have agreed not to disclose the purchase price. Kokko does not reveal it, but based on the results, the company’s transaction amount can be considered “considerable”.
In 2022, STR Tecoil generated a profit of 9.1 million euros with a turnover of 54.5 million euros. In 2023, its turnover was 54.6 million euros and the result was 3.0 million euros.
“This year the result will be better than last year. Our turnover will increase this year”, Kokko summarizes.
STR Tecoil operating in Hamina has been one of the most successful companies in Kymenlaakso. The waste oil refinery operating in the port of Hamina operates around the clock and its production capacity is approximately 50,000 tons per year.
“99 percent of our production is exported. Europe is our main market and last year the recession hit us too.”
Applied for funding for growth
Kokko of STR Tecoil also says that before the acquisition, the company turned every stone to accelerate its growth. It applied for growth money from the market several times.
“The listing window closed while we were considering it. Everything possible was thought of and capital investor patterns were also reviewed,” says Kokko.
Known for lubricants, TotalEnergies is the world’s fourth largest oil and energy company. Its operating profits have been around 30 billion euros: for example, in January–June 2022, it recorded a profit of 18.4 billion euros.
Kokko emphasizes that with the resources of Total, which employs around 100,000 people, STR Tecoil is able to expand its business. Investments in the industry consume large sums of money.
“We will get a good owner who wants to raise us. We will certainly grow by all measures”, Kokko praises the acquisition.