Energobaltic's expansion to be powered by Rolls Royce

Rolls Royce Power Ventures is to acquire a 40% stake in Gdansk-based Energobaltic, jointly owned by Petrobaltic and Hydromex. The $12-million deal will partly help to finance the $38-million construction of a new gas power-and-heating plant in Wladyslawowo. There are three parts to the investment plan: the construction of a 82.5-kilometer underwater pipeline to link Petrobaltic's oil-rig with Wladyslawowo; the building of a lighting plant; and the construction of a heating system. "The work will start by the end of this year or the beginning of next year, and the plant is due to start operating in the fall of 2001," said Energobaltic CEO Lech Kownacki. Petrobaltic and Hydromex do not have enough resources to finance the transaction, which is why they decided to sign a deal with Rolls Royce Power Ventures, each giving up a 20% stake. Additional funding is also being obtained from some environmental grants, one of which is the Treasury-backed Ekofundusz. (Puls Biznesu, page 4) P.S.