OREANDA-NEWS. PKN ORLEN has signed purchase agreements for natural gas with six suppliers: ENOI SpA, RWE Supply & Trading GmbH, VITOL SA, Vattenfall Energy Trading GmbH, Mercuria Energy Trading SA and PGNiG Sales & Trading GmbH. The new agreements will supplement the Company's current supply portfolio.

With a total estimated value exceeding PLN 1.7bn, these are short-term agreements executed in line with standard practice for liquid Western European markets. By diversifying its gas fuel sources, PKN ORLEN seeks to enhance the supply security of its production facilities. Steps taken by the Company in this regard are consistent with its adopted strategy and were designed to consolidate ORLEN's position in the energy sector.

“PKN ORLEN is one of the largest gas fuel consumers in Poland. Given our work in gas-fired energy generation, the Company's gas supply will become increasingly important in the years to come. For that reason, we think it is vital to be an active part of the changing gas market and to maintain working relations with domestic and foreign suppliers,” said Jacek Krawiec, President of the PKN ORLEN Management Board.

This year, PKN ORLEN also became a member of the Polish Power Exchange, gaining direct access to wholesale trading and improving its ability to leverage the potential in a deregulated Polish gas market. And with its presence on the German EEX exchange secured last year, the Company's PPE membership is another example of its efforts to seek new solutions in the area of natural gas supplies.

“As we see it, further deregulation of the gas market will be conditional on the development of infrastructure, especially cross-border connections, and on whether the issue of long-term contracts is finally resolved by introducing provisions whereby gas requirements could be partly satisfied through the exchange market, outside of existing agreements,” Mr Krawiec added.