13/12/2013

Business new : Calumet Specialty Products Partners, L.P. Acquires Bel-Ray Company, Inc.

Acquisition of Global Lubricants Company Signals International Expansion of Specialty Products Business

INDIANAPOLIS, IN – December 11, 2013 –  Calumet Specialty Products Partners, L.P. (NASDAQ: CLMT (“Calumet” or the “Partnership”) a leading independent producer of specialty hydrocarbon and fuel products, today announced that it acquired the Bel-Ray Company, Inc. (“Bel-Ray”), a manufacturer and global distributor of high-performance lubricants.  Financial terms of the transaction were not disclosed.

Privately-held Bel-Ray manufacturers and distributes a wide array of high-end specialty lubricants sold through its Industrial, Mining and Powersports divisions.  Founded in 1946 by William Kiefer Bel-Ray’s products are sold in more than 100 countries across six continents.  The company owns and operates a 32-acre manufacturing facility in New Jersey with convenient access to ports in New York, Newark and Philadelphia.  Bel-Ray is managed by Mr. Kiefer’s daughter, Daryl Bronson, who has led the company’s growth since his retirement in 1995.

For nearly 70 years, Bel-Ray’s high performance lubrication technologies have been engineered to set the highest standards of quality, value and performance.  Today, Bel-Ray’s specialty lubricants are widely accepted as a brand of choice used in the aerospace, automotive, energy, food, marine, military, mining, motorcycle, powersports, steel and textiles industries.

“This transaction signals our ongoing commitment to growing a global specialty products business,” stated Jennifer Straumins, President and COO of Calumet Specialty Products Partners.  “Bel-Ray will join an existing portfolio of market-leading specialty products brands that include our Royal Purple line of high-performance synthetic lubricants and our Penreco line of FDA-registered food-grade products.”

“Bel-Ray’s New Jersey-based manufacturing plant will provide us with an East Coast facility capable of serving both domestic and export markets,” continued Straumins.  “This facility, which currently produces lubricating oils and greases, has ample capacity to supply incremental customer demand for our products.”

“Given the private, fragmented nature of the specialty products markets we occupy, Calumet remains an active consolidator of established, profitable businesses that complement our existing product portfolio,” concluded Straumins.

“We are excited by the potential opportunities stemming from this transaction and look forward to having the employees of Bel-Ray join the Calumet family of companies,” stated Bryan Yourdon, President of Royal Purple and Calumet’s Vice President of Branded and Packaged Products.
“As a globally recognized specialty lubricants brand, Bel-Ray provides us with an entry point into new customers and geographies where we will have an opportunity to cross-sell our existing lines of products, such as Royal Purple, among others,” continued Yourdon.  “Over time, we will seek to pursue the acquisition of additional branded specialty product lines that help us to further achieve profitable growth on a global scale.”

Latham & Watkins LLP acted as legal counsel to Calumet with respect to this transaction.

About Calumet Specialty Products Partners, L.P.

Calumet Specialty Products Partners, L.P. (NASDAQ: CLMT) is a master limited partnership and is a leading independent producer of high-quality, specialty hydrocarbon products in North America. Calumet processes crude oil and other feedstocks into customized lubricating oils, solvents and waxes used in consumer, industrial and automotive products. Calumet also produces fuel products including gasoline, diesel and jet fuel.  Calumet is based in Indianapolis, Indiana and has eleven facilities located in northwest Louisiana, northwest Wisconsin, northern Montana, western Pennsylvania, Texas and eastern Missouri.

Safe Harbor Statement
Certain statements and information in this press release may constitute “forward-looking statements.”  The words “believe,” “expect,” “anticipate,” “plan,” “intend,” “foresee,” “should,” “would,” “could” or other similar expressions are intended to identify forward-looking statements, which are generally not historical in nature.  These forward-looking statements are based on our current expectations and beliefs concerning future developments and their potential effect on us.  While management believes that these forward-looking statements are reasonable as and when made, there can be no assurance that future developments affecting us will be those that we anticipate.  All comments concerning our expectations for future sales and operating results are based on our forecasts for our existing operations and do not include the potential impact of any future acquisitions.  Our forward-looking statements involve significant risks and uncertainties (some of which are beyond our control) and assumptions that could cause actual results to differ materially from our historical experience and our present expectations or projections.  Important factors that could cause actual results to differ materially from those in the forward-looking statements include: the overall demand for specialty hydrocarbon products, fuels and other refined products; our ability to produce specialty products and fuels that meet our customers’ unique and precise specifications; the impact of fluctuations and rapid increases or decreases in crude oil and crack spread prices, including the resulting impact on our liquidity; the results of our hedging and other risk management activities; our ability to comply with financial covenants contained in our debt instruments; the availability of, and our ability to consummate, acquisition or combination opportunities and the impact of any completed acquisitions; labor relations; our access to capital to fund expansions, acquisitions and our working capital needs and our ability to obtain debt or equity financing on satisfactory terms; successful integration and future performance of acquired assets, businesses or third-party product supply and processing relationships; our ability to timely and effectively integrate the operations of recently acquired businesses or assets, particularly those in new geographic areas or in new lines of business; environmental liabilities or events that are not covered by an indemnity, insurance or existing reserves; maintenance of our credit ratings and ability to receive open credit lines from our suppliers; demand for various grades of crude oil and resulting changes in pricing conditions; fluctuations in refinery capacity; our ability to access sufficient crude oil supply through long-term or month-to-month evergreen contracts and on the spot market; the effects of competition; continued creditworthiness of, and performance by, counterparties; the impact of current and future laws, rulings and governmental regulations, including guidance related to the Dodd-Frank Wall Street Reform and Consumer Protection Act; shortages or cost increases of power supplies, natural gas, materials or labor; hurricane or other weather interference with business operations; our ability to access the debt and equity markets; accidents or other unscheduled shutdowns; and general economic, market or business conditions.  For additional information regarding known material factors that could cause our actual results to differ from our projected results, please see our filings with Securities and Exchange Commission (“SEC”), including our 2012 Annual Report on Form 10-K, Quarterly Reports on Form 10-Q and Current Reports on Form 8-K.  Readers are cautioned not to place undue reliance on forward-looking statements, which speak only as of the date they are made.  We undertake no obligation to publicly update or revise any forward-looking statements after the date they are made, whether as a result of new information, future events or otherwise.

SOURCE Calumet Specialty Products Partners, L.P.

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