Sepyana Oil East Africa Ltd owns and operates the Lube Oil Blending Plant in Nairobi, within the Sameer Africa Complex with an annual output of 20 million litres.
It is among the new entrants in the expanding lubricants industry.
Managing Director Poosti Reza talked to Business Beat about how quality and competitive prices are growing their market share.
What attracted you to open a regional blending plant in Kenya?
Kenya’s huge consumption and strategic location as the gateway of the East African region. The urban, industrial and agricultural development have increased the demand for lubricants.
The port of Mombasa is also important for us because it is core to our operations. There is no duty when exporting to Comesa member states, so that makes it an attractive business environment.
How long has the blending plant been operational and what is its capacity?
This is the first operational year since we entered the Kenyan market. Our current capacity is 20,000 tones per year and by the end of 2015, we intend to process 10,000 tonnes for the Kenyan market. The new plant with modern equipment and laboratory was built at a cost $10 million (Sh970 million).
Which products do you offer in the market?
We have a wide range of products so as to penetrate all market segments effectively. We produce 30 products in seven categories for the automotive industry including diesel and petrol engine oils, motorcycle oils, special tractor oils and automotive gear oils.
We also produce automatic transmission fluid, automotive greases and industrial lubricants such as hydraulic, gear and compressor oils as well as brake fluids and coolants.
What are the prospects for Sepyana Oil East Africa?
Our strategy is to achieve two per cent of the Kenyan market in the next two years and five per cent in the next five years.
As for the rest of Africa, we are aiming to attain five per cent of the African lubricants market share.
What steps have you put in place to achieve the target?
Sixty per cent of the market belongs to diesel engines oils, 40 per cent to petrol engine oils and 10 per cent to industry oils.
Our plan is to produce according to the market share, which is why 60 per cent of our products are produced for diesel engines and 40 per cent for petrol engines, with the remaining segment being specialty products.
We blend both mineral-based and synthetic lubricants. We also make sure that our products are high quality. We have been approved by the Kenya Bureau of Standards and also attained SGS certification.
We are negotiating to acquire international original equipment manufacturer approval for our finished products.
You have entered into a market dominated by established players, how do you intend to create a niche?
We strive to ensure our products are high quality. To maintain this, we source high quality stock from the Middle East and high- performance additives from an international additive supplier. We make sure our prices are competitive and advertise to make sure our presence is felt.
