PKN Orlen bids to take full control of Czech unit Unipetrol

PKN Orlen has launched a tender to take full control con Czech-based downstream company Unipetrol which owns the Benzina gas station network.

Poland’s biggest oil refiner PKN Orlen, holding a 62.9% equity interest in Unipetrol a.s., has launched a conditional voluntary tender offer to acquire at least 90% of the Czech retailer’s share capital.

Unipetrol is the largest refining and petrochemical group in the Czech Republic. It owns the refineries in Litvínov and Kralupy, the largest local retail chain Benzina (400 service stations), and Spolana, the sole PVC and caprolactam manufacturer on the Czech market, according to a press release.

Ultimately, PKN Orlen aims to buy all Unipetrol shares and have the company delisted from the Prague Stock Exchange. The transaction is in line with the Group’s strategy for 2017–2021, which envisages integration of refining assets, extension of the petrochemical value chain, and development of the retail network.

“Once we acquire full control of Unipetrol, we will be able to better leverage the synergies from our optimisation measures and the enhanced segment management,” said Wojciech Jasiński, CEO and President of the PKN Orlen board.

PKN Orlen is offering CZK 380 per share, which is close to the price at which Unipetrol shares are currently trading on the Prague Stock Exchange. This means that acquiring a 90% and 100% equity interest would cost PLN 3.05bn ($854mn) and PLN 4.2bn ($1.2bn), respectively.