On May 1, Russia stopped transporting oil through pipelines from Kazakhstan to the Schwedt refinery. Since then, the German authorities have been looking for alternative sources of raw material supply. Thanks to the accumulated stocks, the utilization of production capacity in the plant exceeds 80%.
Katharina Reiche, German Minister of Economy and Energy, confirmed on Monday talks with the government in Warsaw about possible oil supplies from Poland. One of the options being considered is to supply the refinery through the port of Gdańsk. — We are conducting good talks with the Polish government regarding the suspension of supplies from Kazakhstan – said the head of the German Ministry of Economy.
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During her visit to Schwedt, Reiche announced the extension of the government's employment guarantee for approximately 1,200 people until the end of the year. plant employees. — This decision is a signal of safety for employees and the region, she said. The head of the ministry also announced the preparation of a new concept for the plant, which is to maintain its profitability.
At the same time, attempts are being made to improve the transport of oil from the port of Rostock to Schwedt. The quay is being expanded in this Baltic port – the port will be able to handle larger tankers.
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After Russia's full-scale invasion of Ukraine in February 2022, the German authorities took over the local branch of Rosneft, which holds shares in three German refineries, including the plants in Schwedt. The US Department of the Treasury published a license in March that exempts Rosneft's German subsidiary from sanctions imposed by the United States on Russia.
Millions of tons of oil per year
PERN spokesman, Paweł Łukaszewicz, informed that The Polish company is able to transport approximately 2 million tons of raw material to Germany annually. Transport would take place using the Pomeranian Pipeline and the Western Section of the “Przyjaźń” bus.
– PERN has infrastructure that enables the rapid launch of crude oil deliveries to PCK Schwedt via Naftoport in Gdańsk and pipeline transport – Łukaszewicz said in a statement to PAP on Monday.
However, Poland sets a condition: supplies are to go to Western entities, such as Shell or Eni, which have shares in the plant, and not to Russian entities. Let us recall that after the invasion of Ukraine, the German branch of Rosneft was placed under the trust of the government in Berlin.
