Finding a buyer is delayed
Federal government extends trust administration for Schwedt refinery
September 8, 2023, 3:49 p.m
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The oil refinery in Schwedt, with its 3,000 employees, is one of the largest employers in Brandenburg. It remains in trust for the time being. The Ministry of Economic Affairs justifies this with the security of the energy supply in Germany. The search for buyers continues.
The federal government is extending the trusteeship of the PCK oil refinery in Schwedt, Brandenburg, by six months. This was announced by the Ministry of Economic Affairs. Several people involved in the matter said that there was still no progress in negotiations with the Russian oil company Rosneft about the sale of its shares in the refinery. This is likely to delay the search for potential investors. “By extending the trust administration, we are countering a continued threat to energy supply security,” said Green Party State Secretary for Economic Affairs Michael Kellner.
According to the Ministry of Economic Affairs, Rosneft Germany has a total of around twelve percent of Germany’s petroleum processing capacity. In September last year, Germany placed the oil processor, which supplies eastern Germany and parts of western Poland with gasoline, under the trusteeship of the Federal Network Agency, citing the need to secure energy supplies. A lawsuit by Rosneft, which owns 54 percent of the refinery, was rejected in March.
The Federal Ministry of Economics could expropriate Rosneft, but has so far shied away from this step. Brandenburg’s Prime Minister Dietmar Woidke is urging us to hurry. A solution is very important to give people security, said the SPD politician on ZDF. “We have to prove that it works and that things are moving forward,” said the Brandenburg head of government.
Possible buyers without potential?
With around 3,000 direct and indirect employees, the refinery is also one of the largest employers in Brandenburg. In June, the Polish government also urged the Ministry of Economic Affairs to step up its efforts to force Rosneft out of the company in order to clear the way for Polish investors.
37 percent of the shares in Schwedt are held by Shell and a good eight percent by the Italian Eni. Shell is also looking for buyers for its share in the refinery. According to several people involved, the negotiations are well advanced. Private Polish companies are considered potential buyers. However, the Polish state-owned company Orlen, which was said to be interested in taking over Schwedt, is not given any chances. Shell declined to comment. Rosneft and the Polish Ministry of the Environment did not initially receive any comments.
Kellner praises cooperation with Poland
The federal government praised the talks with Poland, for example. “We work very well with the Polish side,” said Economics State Secretary Kellner. “And we are still very interested in expanding this cooperation at the refinery in Schwedt.” It is very good that not only Shell, but also the Eni company for the first time had a ship unloaded in Gdansk to supply Schwedt.
Since the EU oil embargo against Russia because of the attack on Ukraine, the refinery’s main supply has largely come via the port of Rostock. The pipeline from there is to be expanded. Oil is also delivered from Gdansk to Schwedt, some of it comes from Kazakhstan. It is unclear whether Kazakh companies could also join Schwedt. Two Kazakh companies, KazMunayGas and its subsidiary Kaztransoil, are said to be interested in Shell’s shares. The federal government had welcomed the Kazakh oil deliveries. However, Berlin points out that Russia can stop deliveries from the Central Asian country at any time. The federal government states that the prerequisite for purchasing Rosneft shares is that investors guarantee a production level of 75 percent.