Confusion reins over deal between Orlen and Agrofert

On August 25, Agrofert demanded from Orlen, the majority shareholder in Unipetrol, EUR 77 million of compensation for failing to fulfill a purchase agreement. In reply to these demands, Orlen has sent its own set of proposals to close the case smoothly, the details of which have not been revealed. However, the Czech company claims that they have not received any information from PKN Orlen. "Orlen has not been and is not in any talks with us. As until now we have not made any decision on further steps. We hope that the talks will begin soon," said Dariusz Sobczyński, a representative of Agrofert in Poland. Meanwhile Orlen spokesperson, Dawid Piekarz, claims that correspondence with Agrofert has been going on for the past few weeks. The case centers on a deal Orlen struck with Agrofert when acquiring Unipetrol to sell it a part of the assets of the Czech oil concern. Orlen's new management, however, regarded these agreements as unbeneficial for Orlen and wants to solve the case in another way. (Puls Biznesu, pp. 1, 7) A.K.