Exit Kownacki?

Comments from the Treasury Minister suggest that the head of oil concern PKN Orlen, Piotr Kownacki, may need to begin looking for a new job. This comes as the oil giant moves to expand further into the Baltic states and casts an eye to the Ukrainian market.

Last week Treasury Minister Alexander Grad said that Orlen's management board, which is largely composed of political appointees from the State Treasury, should have a professional manager. Piotr Kownacki replaced his former boss, Igor Chalupec, in January. Then-Prime Minister Jarosůaw Kaczyński admitted at the time that the reasons for Chalupec's dismissal "were not purely business-related."

"This was a political appointment, while this company needs a real manager," said Grad, speaking about Kownacki's appointment in January, in an interview with Radio Zet. "I hope the supervisory board will call a competition for this post."

Piotr Kownacki looks unlikely to be the last boss of a state-owned firm to be ousted. The Treasury Minister commented that other appointees of the Kaczyński government would be removed as well. "The level of politicization of state firms has crossed all boundaries," he said.

If Kownacki is dismissed, Orlen will need to find a new CEO quickly. Russia's recent admission that it will not repair the Przyjaęń pipeline, which previously fed Orlen's Lithuanian Maţeikiř Nafta refinery, means costs will rise for the oil giant. The firm has also announced a raft of ambitious development plans.

It currently operates 30 gas stations in Lithuania and Latvia but intends to increase that number to 230, giving it around a 20-percent share of the countries' combined market. Orlen plans to spend around EUR 200 (zů.721) million on the scheme. Kownacki has also said the firm plans to enter the Ukrainian market, though the exact strategy has yet to be worked out. (Reuters)