Calumet Considers Selling Lubricants Business for $500 Million

(Bloomberg) -- Calumet Specialty Products Partners LP, a producer of hydrocarbon products, is considering a sale of its finished lubricants business, which is expected to fetch about $500 million, according to people familiar with the matter. The units rose as much as 20%.

The company is working with an adviser to find a buyer for the unit, said the people, who asked not to be identified because they weren't authorized to speak publicly. The business is receiving interest from private equity firms, the people said.

A representative for Calumet didn't respond to requests for comment.

Units in Calumet were up 2% to $2.60 at 3:46 p.m. in New York Thursday, giving the Indianapolis-based master limited partnership a market value of about $203 million. It also has about $1.4 billion in debt, according to data compiled by Bloomberg.

The lubricants arm makes motor oil and grease under the Royal Purple and Bel-Ray brands, among other products.

Calumet earned $3.6 million in the quarter ended June 30, compared with a net loss of $16.8 million during the same period a year earlier, according to a filing.

The company processes crude oil and feedstocks into lubricating oils used in consumer, industrial and automotive products, according to its website.

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