Central European oil concerns under threat from Russian firms, say analysts

Unless Orlen, Hungary's MOL and Austria's OMV tighten their cooperation, they could become an easy target for Russian firms, Artur Pielech from Roland Berger Strategy Consultants believes. Russian companies will be looking to reposition themselves and rather than sell crude oil, offer final goods and thus attain higher margins. According to Peter Stewart from the Platts agency, even if Russian companies do not enter Poland directly, they will seek to sell their fuel here and considering their supplies and financial might, it will be difficult for Central European firms to compete. The analysts do not believe that the Central European firms could be saved by a takeover by a major world oil player. The latter are more likely to target Chinese and Indian firms, which offer much better potential. (Gazeta Wyborcza, p. 22) T.J.