Page 14 - EurOil Week 19 2021

EurOil NEWS IN BRIEF EurOil

player in the energy market. remains a material catalyst for Gazprom
Czech energy company multi-energy company that will be able to [shares],” BCS Global Markets commented
“We are implementing a plan to build a
on May 11.
EPH´s profit stagnates in compete much more effectively on the global that NS2 could to be finished no later than
Previously various timescales indicated
market and respond to the challenges of
2020 energy transformation,” PKN Orlen’s CEO September, BCS GM markets reminds, while
Daniel Obajtek said in a statement.
affirming a Buy call on Gazprom’s shares.
Ebitda of the Energenticky and Prumyslovy “Only a strong company with diversified In early April, Pavel Zavalny, Head of
Holding (EPH) of Czech billionaire Daniel income will provide capital for ambitious the State Duma Committee on Energy, had
Kretinsky stagnated in 2020 year-on-year investments, including low and zero- postulated that both lines of NS2 could
at €2.1bn, compared to €2.1bn in 2019, emission energy sources,” Obajtek also said. be finished as early as June, while earlier
according to the company´s annual results. PKN Orlen took over Poland’s other, estimates had put Line B being finished by
Consolidated EPH sales reached €8.5bn in smaller, refiner Lotos a year ago following a June and Line A, on which construction
2020, down from €8.6bn a year before. The conditional clearance of the merger by the only recently restarted, seeing completion
group cash conversion ratio stood at the level European Commission. Also last year, the in September (in-line with BCS GM
of 82% last year, compared to 83% in 2019. company completed the takeover of Energa, assumption).
In 2020, EPH sold Prague heating a power company. “Given the negative headlines generated
company Prazska Teplarenska and its stake Adding PGNiG to its structures, PKN around the line over the last few years, we
in the Hungarian heat producer Budapesti Orlen could sport an annual turnover of think Nord Stream-2’s physical completion –
Eromu. some PLN200bn (€43.85bn), the Polish even if continued sanctions efforts by the US
The company claimed it has been government assumes. government keep shipments from beginning
decreasing its exposure to coal as fuel for PKN Orlen’s sales came in at PLN86bn immediately – will be positive for Gazprom’s
power generation; since 2014 it has reduced while PGNiG posted earnings of PLN39.2bn. stock,” senior oil and gas analyst Ronald P
emission intensity by 47%. The company Both PKN Orlen and PGNiG are listed Smith argues.
decided to close during 2021-2023 selected on the Warsaw Stock Exchange. The former’s Furthermore, as BCS GM expects Line B
coal fired power plants in France, Germany stock gained 2.51% to PLN71.76 at the close indeed to be finished by mid-summer, the
and the UK with total installed capacity of of trading on May 10, lifting year-to-date de-risking of Gazprom’s stock could start
1,865 MW, which would decline its hard coal investor returns to 24.36%. PKN Orlen’s well before construction on the entire project
installed capacity by 80%. market cap is PLN30.7bn. is completed, be that in the summer or late
“We continue to deliver on our strategy PGNiG’s shares inched up 0.24% to September, Smith believes.
of steady carbon footprint reduction, while PLN6.68. Year-to-date, they have rallied
providing flexible generation capacity and 20.53%. PGNiG’s market cap is PLN38.6bn.
full security of energy supply. The vast CEO Obajtek said earlier this year that he OMV to give up Siberia
majority (81%) of net power produced in would expect the takeover to be completed
2020 by the whole EPH Group was from zero by the end of the year. project if production goes
or low carbon intensive sources, and this
figure is set to grow over the next years,” said ahead at Neptun Deep in
Kretinsky. . Completion of Nord Stream
2 now aimed at end- Romania
PKN Orlen asks market September The Austrian company OMV is preparing
to adopt a final investment decision on the
watchdog to approve Russia’s pipeline to Germany via the Baltic Neptun Deep offshore project in Romania’s
Black Sea next year, said OMV CEO,
takeover of PGNiG Sea Nord Stream 2 (NS2) may be completed Rainer Seele quoted by Profit.ro.
He pointed to “encouraging”
by late September, before Germany’s
Poland’s state-controlled refiner PKN Orlen parliamentary elections on September developments in Romania, where the
has asked the country’s anti-monopoly 26, according to Sergei Nechaev, Russia’s government seems determined to start the
watchdog UOKiK to okay Orlen’s takeover of Ambassador to Germany, as cited by parliamentary procedure to amend the
another state-run company, the oil and gas Vedomosti daily. Offshore Law, and Romgaz has submitted
giant PGNiG, Orlen said on May 10. “The latest indications from high-level a binding offer to acquire a subsidiary of
Poland’s radical rightwing government Russian sources indicate NS2 should be ExxonMobil that owns 50% of the project.
led by Law and Justice (PiS) has picked PKN completed by end-September, in line with OMV has repeatedly deferred the
Orlen to lead the effort to build a Polish our expectations, if less optimistic than investment decision in the project, amid
energy company with capacity to be a global some. We think the completion of NS2 regulatory issues generated by the Offshore

P14 www. NEWSBASE .com Week 19 13•May•2021