Orlen to solidify relationship with Kazakhstan

"We are interested in embarking on a venture with a company already extracting oil and not conducting an individual search," said Piotr Kownacki, president of PKN Orlen. The company has invested much of its hope in signing an agreement with Kazakh state company KazMunaiGaz, and may reap substantial rewards when president Lech Kaczynski visits Kazakhstan next month. "We anticipate that installations will be fully operational [in Maizeikiu] in Q4," said Kownacki. "Only then we could think of posting a profit [in that company]."

In his opinion, this is possible even if oil supplies are delivered by sea, as the negotiations with Orlen's Russian partner are not likely to be started again. However, "We are conducting talks with representatives of Transnieft [the Russian operator of oil pipelines]," stressed Orlen's CEO.

He also added that due to the company's acquisition, it will not make any other foreign purchases within the next two years. (Puls Biznesu, pp. 1, 12) M.M.