The last years of Orlen’s operation have been marked by high-profile acquisitions and their plans – the already completed acquisitions of Energa and Ruch, the Lotos purchase plan approved by Brussels, and work on the acquisition of PGNiG. The president of the oil concern, however, assures that the rumors about the targeting of Grupa Azoty are untrue.
- Grupa Azoty was not targeted by PKN Orlen, which has started several large acquisition processes in recent years
- The company’s new strategy, which will appear after November 30, will include acquisitions
- The president of PKN Orlen does not rule out entering the Romanian market as a business
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– It is not a question of whether I want it or not, but we have records that block such traffic. We are in the European Union, the European Commission would have to give its consent, and even when taking over Lotos, the talks were very difficult. There are also internal regulations, approval of the Office of Competition and Consumer Protection is required, one would have to go through it. I know what is possible to take over and what is not possible – says Daniel Obajtek in an interview with PAP Biznes, when asked about speculations regarding the interest in the acquisition of Grupa Azoty.
Preferred cashless transactions
Acquisitions, both completed and planned, will be one of the elements of the group’s new strategy. It is already known that after Orlen will become the sole owner of Energa intends to transfer to it part of the power industry operating today under the aegis of the Płock company.
Another challenge is finding a partner that will enable the implementation of the remedial measures set by the European Commission when taking over Lotos. In this context Orlen is to hold talks with companies not only from Europe.
– We are conducting a number of talks in this area, it is a matter of valuations and analyzes. The works are in progress all the time, they cannot go on with the curtain open. The process is going according to plan, we want to complete the transaction next year. I estimate that we have more than half of the way behind us – explains Obajtek and admits that he hopes that the process of taking over the Gdańsk company will be possible without cash, although the last word will belong to the company led by Jacek Sasin of the Ministry of State Assets.
– We are counting on a structure that will either eliminate or significantly reduce cash needs. This is an element of our talks with MAP, but the final structure is not yet available – says Obajtek and emphasizes that he hopes that a similar cashless structure will be used not only on the occasion of the acquisition of PGNiG, but also in each subsequent acquisition.
Orlen is interested in Romania
The purchase that has already been completed is the acquisition of Ruch, whose role in the development of retail sales will be described in the strategy.
– Now there is a question of recapitalization of the Movement, plans and development vision, but these will be plans connected with the Orlen Group. This acquisition makes great business sense in conjunction with the strategy of the entire Orlen Group – emphasizes Obajtek.
Interestingly, the president of the Płock concern confirms in an interview with PAP his interest in running a business in Romania. He recently talked to the Prime Minister of Romania on this matter, who assured that the Polish company would be welcome in this country.
Climate neutrality
At the same time, the president of the Płock concern assures that the strategy, which can be presented after approval, will not change the company’s acquisition targets, and that the novelty – achieving emission neutrality by 2050 – was announced in September this year.
Everything that will be included in our strategy until 2030 is fully dimensioned, calculated and takes into account the investments already in progress. It contains specific initiatives (…). We will announce a strategy that is feasible even in difficult macro conditions, says Obajtek.
At the same time, the document will not include specific solutions to achieve carbon neutrality, the time horizon of which will exceed 2030.
– New technologies come in every few years, so it is difficult to be associated with investment projects for the years beyond 2030, because there may already be new ways to achieve zero emissions. This is how all companies in the energy industry in Europe and in the world operate – explains Obajtek and admits that Orlen has planned “60 diagnosed initiatives related to achieving emission neutrality in the refinery area”
– Our CAPEX in 2021 will be ambitious, but considering the EBITDA growth estimated next year, safe enough not to breach the credit covenants – says and reminds that this year’s capital expenditure will amount to PLN 9 billion, of which PLN 7.7 billion will be spent by PKN Orlen, and PLN 1.3 billion in the Energa Group.
According to Daniel Obajtek, investments in the refining area are necessary, because although the role of crude oil is decreasing, it will take 6-7 years more to depart from it in Central Europe than in the rest of Europe.
See also: What’s next with fuel prices? Good news for drivers, worse for refineries [WYWIAD]
– So it is not said that you need to turn off the lights in the company, but we need to optimize our business, obtain as many high-margin products as possible and thus secure funds for transformation and investments in other segments – explains the reasons for the implementation of further investments in the deepening of crude oil processing Daniel Obajtek.
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