Poland's Orlen considering acquiring stake in Ukrnafta

The Polish group Orlen is interested in expanding its presence in Ukraine and is considering acquiring a stake in JSC Ukrnafta, the Polish online portal bankier.pl reported on Thursday, citing Orlen CEO Ireneusz Fafára.

"We have begun discussions on the possibility of our participation in Ukrnafta. We are one of the partners in this process. Whether this participation will take place and what kind it will be is a matter for negotiations with the Ukrainian side," he said at a press conference.

According to him, the Ukrainian market is of extreme importance for the group, especially for the oil refinery in Mazeikiai (Lithuania), which sells almost 18% of its products there.

"We believe the war will end and Ukraine will emerge victorious. We would like to be more active in this market than we are now. We are one of the main partners in fuel supplies to Ukraine and would like to strengthen this position," Fafara emphasized.

He added that Orlen sells approximately 1.5 million tonnes of petroleum products in Ukraine annually.

JSC Ukrnafta is the largest oil producing company in Ukraine, which carries out a full cycle of activities in the field of production: exploration, production of oil and gas, provision of oil industry services, as well as management of the largest network of filling stations in Ukraine UKRNAFTA.

The company operates over 1,106 oil and 131 gas wells.

Ukrnafta’s shareholders are Naftogaz Ukrainy and the Ministry of Defense of Ukraine. Since 2022, the company has been under state control and is undergoing a large-scale business transformation.

The UKRNAFTA network of petrol stations is the largest in Ukraine, with nearly 700 locations and a top-three ranking in terms of fuel sales. The UKRNAFTA brand consolidates networks previously operating under the Glusco, Shell, and U.Go brands.