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Global marine lubricants supplier Castrol Marine has extended its port coverage in China by offering products to clients in the major southern port of Guangzhou.

The new service will give customers operating in the Pearl River Delta region the opportunity to access Castrol's comprehensive range of lubricants and support services.

Castrol's expansion into Guangzhou follows the company's announcement last year of the launch of a new barge delivery service at three strategic ports along China’s lower Yangtze River – Nanjing, Jiangyin, and Taicang. Six other Chinese ports were also added to the supply network.

Previous to the launch, vessels had to rely on marine lubricant deliveries by drum. As well as cost savings and loading and efficiency benefits, Castrol said the bulk supply service would improve overall safety levels with less storage of drums required onboard vessels.

Elsewhere, barge supply services were introduced last year at nine locations in Japan, while in Europe, Castrol Marine added 10 new ports to its UK network, and nearly 20 new ports across Scandinavia.

In addition to the new delivery service in Guangzhou, Castrol has also opened a warehouse in Xiamen. Located in the southeastern Fujian province, the port is ranked amongst the top ten in China and is also an important base for making medium and large-sized modern container vessels and yachts.

Last month the company launched the Castrol Academy - a module-based training course designed to address the widening skills gap in the marine engineering sector.

It allows marine operatives to study each module via a study pack with online support materials available anywhere in the world.

A total of eleven modules include everything from basic skills such as indentifying ship types, the basics of lubrication and working with base oils to more advanced skill sets such as engine operation, machinery installation and power transmission.