Since few months, PKN and the government have been negotiating on the future shape of a refining sector which is hit by depressed margins.
Reuters cited Babis as saying that, "The Czech side is primarily interested in the Kralupy refinery."
"We are interested in a certain asset, the Polish side has an interest in selling some maybe larger assets, which include this asset, so it is under negotiation."
The acquisition of the refinery is expected to help strategic aim of the government to maintain domestic fuel supplies and infrastructure operational and under government control.
Kralupy refinery would be merged with state-owned Mero, which operates crude oil pipelines including one that leads from Germany to the refinery, as well as with Cepro, a state-owned pipeline and storage firm distributing refined fuels.
"We have the (crude oil) pipe, we have the output side, the refinery is not (fully) utilised so I think it would fit into the assets that we have," Babis added.
Image: Czech government plans to buy Kralupy refinery. Photo: courtesy of Vichaya Kiatying-Angsulee / freedigitalphotos.net.
