Oil and gas company OMV Petrom finalized work on the the upgrade of the crude vacuum distillation unit in the Petrobrazi refinery, after investments of EUR 100 million. The modernization project of the crude vacuum distillation unit started in 2009 and it was done during the scheduled general shutdown which began in May 2012.

“Romanian refineries produce excess gasoline compared to the demand, whereas for diesel, around 30 percent comes from imports. The upgraded unit is very important in the refinery’s modernization process because it will allow us to improve the product mix in order to respond to the market demand,” said Neil Anthony Morgan, Petrom Executive Board member, responsible for Refining and Marketing.

Petrom plans to invest EUR 600 million in the Petrobrazi refinery by 2014 in order to increase efficiency and maximize the integration value of the plant. Out of this amount, approximately EUR 400 million was already invested.

OMV Petrom exploits proved oil and gas reserves in Romania and Kazakhstan, and is present in the distribution market for oil products in Romania, Republic of Moldova, Bulgaria and Serbia through a network of approximately 800 filling stations, operated under two brands, Petrom and OMV.

In 2011, the group’s turnover was EUR 5.3 billion and its EBIT profit was EUR 1.1 billion.

The Ministry of Economy holds 20.64 percent of OMV Petrom shares, the Proprietatea Fund SA holds 20.11 percent, the European Bank for Reconstruction and Development 2.03 percent and 6.21 percent is free float on the Bucharest Stock Exchange.

Corina Chirileasa, corina@romania-insider.com