Slovnaft refinery (source: Courtesy of Slovnaft )
The Bratislava-based refinery Slovnaft, is preparing for a great change in the course of its business activities, to be carried out during the following years. The Slovak refinery does not see such great prospects in the production of motor fuels as in the past as it expects a significant drop in demand for petrol and diesel. Thus it plans to focus on the production of chemicals and plastics.
“The world is changing and we have to change too,” said Oszkár Világy, general director of Slovnaft as cited by the Hospodárske Noviny economic daily. “
Experts see the extension of the refinery’s product portfolio as sensible since the usage of plastics, for example in the automotive industry, has been growing.
“Plastics and chemicals are a very good prospective field of business for the future,” said Eva Mahdanová, analyst with Finlord. “By 2020 the global market for plastics should grow by 5.3 percent on average annually.”
During the next years Slovnaft wants to reduce production of motor fuels so that they will make up only one half of its production. Along with plastics and chemical products the company wants to also focus on completely new business activities beyond its current core business such as the sharing of electric cars or even its own brand of fast food, Fresh Corner. This fast food can be already found at some petrol stations and in the future it will also plans to provide shipping services. In the Czech Republic Slovnaft wants to buy the Prazdroj brewery.
One problem might be the labour force as the change would result in the creation of hundreds of new work places.
“It is a problem to find qualified workers,” said Világy.
The company has a package of €460 million to be spent by 2020 to cover related costs and investments while this sum might be even higher as the international group to which it belongs, MOL, plans to spend as much as USD4.5 billion by 2030 due to changes in the whole group .
