Six Dead After Blast at Czech Refinery
An explosion killed six people at a refinery in the Czech Republic on Thursday, rescue officials said. Two other people were taken to hospital with serious injuries, a fire department spokeswoman told Czech Television. The blast occurred at Unipetrol's plant in Kralupy nad Vltavou about 30 km (19 miles) north of Prague. "There was an explosion at the storage tank but no subsequent fire in the Kralupy refinery," Unipetrol spokesman Pavel Kaidl said. "The situation is under control and there is no other danger. The mayor of Kralupy told Czech Television the blast occurred during cleaning of the storage tank.
Unipetrol Says Steam Cracker Shut for 10-day Maintenance
Czech downstream oil group Unipetrol said on Friday it had shut down the steam cracker at its Litvinov refinery on Thursday afternoon due to maintenance activities. "The controlled shutdown is scheduled for 10 days after which the unit will be put back into operation," it said in a news release. "There will be ethylene supply reductions to Spolana in Neratovice and to polyethylene units in Litvínov." The steam cracker with 544,000 tonne annual capacity has been back in operation since October last year following reconstruction after a fire in 2015. (Reporting by Jan Lopatka)
Unipetrol: Switajewski Removed as CEO and Board Chairman
Czech oil refiner Unipetrol supervisory board has removed Marek Switajewski from the position of board chairman and he will also be leaving the post of chief executive, the company said on Friday. Andrzej Modrzejewski was elected as the new chairman, the company said in a regulatory filing. No reason was given. Unipetrol is majority-owned by Poland's PKN Orlen. (Reporting by Jason Hovet and Jan Lopatka)
Pegas Says Does Not Expect Impact from Unipetrol Stoppage
Czech artificial fabrics maker Pegas Nonwovens is on the "safe side" with raw material supplies for now despite a stoppage of production at supplier Unipetrol, Pegas's chief executive said on Thursday. A fire earlier this month halted petrochemical production at Czech downstream oil group Unipetrol's plant and the company said on Thursday a resumption of full production was still a matter of months. When asked about the impact on Pegas, CEO Frantisek Rezac said the company had the support of other suppliers and also had its own safety stock of raw materials and finished products.
Unipetrol to Pay Back Half of $156b Loan to PKN
Czech oil processing firm Unipetrol will pay back half of a 4 billion crown ($155.84 million) loan from its majority shareholder, Poland's PKN Orlen on March 20, the company said in a regulatory filing on Tuesday. The loan was provided in two equal tranches December 2013 and January 2014, and originally both tranches had three-year maturity. Unipetrol spokesman was not immediately available for further comment. ($1 = 25.6680 Czech crowns) (Reporting by Jan Lopatka)
Unipetrol Bolstering Czech Reserves with 40,000m3 of Jet Fuel
Czech downstream oil group Unipetrol said on Monday it would supply 40,000 cubic metres of jet fuel to the country's reserves. Deliveries should be completed by October this year, Unipetrol said. Reporting by Jason Hovet
Exxon Refinery Piles Pain on European Plants
ExxonMobil is pouring $1 billion into modernizing a European refinery just as others are fleeing the sector, making life even more difficult for older plants struggling to stay afloat. Exxon said it would install a new coking unit at the 300,000 barrel per day (bpd) Antwerp plant to turn high sulphur oils created as a by-product of the refining process into various types of higher-profit diesel, including shipping fuels that will meet new environmental laws. "This project demonstrates ExxonMobil's long-term view," said Remko Kruithof, Exxon's public and government affairs manager for the region.
Europe's ‘Ghost Town’ Refineries Spook Oil Company Results
Europe is coming under increasing pressure to close oil refineries as chronic over-capacity hits processing margins, dragging down group profits and hitting share prices. Poland's PKN Orlen and Czech processor Unipetrol both announced unexpected large losses on Wednesday after impairment charges at processing plants. Larger oil peers Royal Dutch Shell, BP and Eni will report next week and refining is expected to weight heavily on the results. Intense competition from other regions with lower costs, faltering domestic demand and plants that produce the wrong type of fuel mean many refineries are surplus to requirements…
Unipetrol Nets Positive Impact from Rafinerska Acquisition
Czech oil processing company Unipetrol expects to book an up to 400 million crown ($19.64 million) positive impact from the pending acquisition of a 32.4 percent stake in Ceska Rafinerska from ENI, head of investor relations Michal Stupavsky told Reuters on Wednesday. Unipetrol used its right of first refusal in July and agreed to take the stake for 30 million euros in a deal that will give it 100 percent control of the refining unit. Unipetrol took a 4.72 billion crown ($231.76 million) impairment charge on its refining assets in the second quarter due to overcapacity in the sector and past underperformance.
Czech State Interested in Buying Kralupy Refinery
The Czech government is interested in buying one of the country's two oil refineries from Unipetrol, majority-owned by Poland's PKN Orlen , and combining it with state-owned oil and oil product pipeline firms, Finance Minister Andrej Babis said. PKN and the government have been in talks for months on the future shape of a refining sector hit by depressed margins. The purchase would help the government's strategic aim of keeping domestic fuel supplies and infrastructure operational and under government control.
Unipetrol Buys out ENI for Full Control of Czech Refineries
Czech oil processing group Unipetrol will take full control of the Czech refining sector after it buys the stake of Italy's ENI in their joint refining firm Ceska Rafinerska, Unipetrol said on Thursday. Unipetrol, majority owned by Poland's PKN Orlen, said it would pay 30 million euros for the 32.4 percent stake it does not already own in the firm which operates the country's two refineries at Litvinov and Kralupy. The acquisition, on the basis of a right of first refusal, followed a bid by Hungary's MOL to buy the ENI stake. (Reporting by Jan Lopatka, Editing by Michael Kahn)
Czech Refinery Renews Deal for Russian Oil Supply
Czech refiner Ceska Rafinerska said on Wednesday it had signed a further contract with Slovak pipeline company Transpetrol for the shipment of Russian oil to its Litvinov refinery for the years 2015 and 2016. The company said fees were unchanged from the present contract. Volumes, running along the Druzhba pipeline which goes through Slovakia to the Czech Republic, should reach up to 4 million tonnes each year. "The new contract, concluded for the period of two years, definitely contributes to the crude oil supply safety in the Czech Republic," Ceska Rafinerska Chief Executive Anna Wydrzyska said in a statement.
Czech Industry Ministry to Keep Control of Oil Pipelines
The Czech government will keep control of oil and oil product pipelines and will not consider allowing Poland's PKN Orlen to take ownership stakes in them, the Industry and Trade Ministry said on Monday after a meeting of government and company officials. The ministry said in a statement the two sides agreed to set up a working group to consider options for the future development of Czech oil refineries. "The option of PKN Orlen's entry into Czech crude oil and crude products pipelines is not in play," Industry and Trade Minister Jan Mladek said in the statement.
Unipetrol to Analyze Buying ENI's Stake in Ceska Rafinerska
Czech oil company Unipetrol will analyze whether to acquire a minority stake in its own Ceska Rafinerska unit once it receives an offer from Italy's ENI, the current owner of the stake, Unipetrol's owner said on Wednesday. Hungarian oil and gas group MOL has said it agreed to buy Eni's Czech, Slovak and Romanian units. The deal could include Eni selling its minority stake in Ceska Rafinerska to MOL. However, Unipetrol, which is owned by Polish firm PKN Orlen, has the right of first refusal on any shares that come up for sale.
