In Brief: Mokate; Elite Cafe to become market leader?; Gdansk Refinery

The Mokate group generated sales revenues of zl. 270 million in 2002, zl. 20 million more than in 2001. Its investment expenditures over the same period were around zl. 40 million, and it has said it could invest a similar figure this year. The company has named potential targets including three Polmos vodka distilleries to be privatized this year: in Jozefow, Bielsko-Biala and Szczecin. (C/O Polish Market Review Retail Update No.7, www.polishmarket.com) ... After a good 2002, a leading coffee producers, Elite Cafe, is intending to move into first place on the market within twelve months. The company can afford such optimistic plans thanks to its good performance last year, when its sales revenues rose 22% to zl. 190 million. Its operational profit over the same period was more than 17% higher than in 2001. (C/O Polish Market Review Retail Update No.7, www.polishmarket.com) ... Nafta Polska yesterday denied media speculation that it would abandon the tender for a 75% stake in the Gdansk Refinery (RG). Parkiet had previously reported that, because PKN wants to merge with RG rather than keep it as a separate entity, Nafta might cancel the tender. (Rzeczpospolita, p. B4) M.M.