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Lithuanian investigators accuse 2 Americans of negligence in refinery fire By Associated Press Wednesday, May 9, 2007 - Updated: 11:45 AM EST VILNIUS, Lithuania - Two U.S. citizens running Lithuania’s Mazeikiu Nafta oil refinery have been accused of negligence that led to a major fire last year, prosecutors said Wednesday. Refinery CEO Paul Nelson English and his deputy, Barton Lee Luck, have been charged with negligence, prosecutor Stasys Pleinys said, and both men have been barred from leaving the country pending the result of the investigation. English and Luck were not immediately available for comment. Fire broke out in the...

Baltic lessons for EU in dealing with a resurgent Russia By Jan Cienski November 24 2006 02:00 When European Union leaders sit down in Helsinki today with Russian President Vladimir Putin to discuss political and economic co-operation, they would do well to consider the example of Lithuania's Mazeikiu refinery. Vilnius's attempts to privatise the plant, the largest enterprise in the Baltic states, highlight the difficulties of working with a resurgent Russia. Mazeikiu is the subject of a bid from PKN Orlen, Poland's leading oil company, which wants to extend its network and keep out potential rivals. Orlen, 27.5 per cent...

Kaczynski says Poles still determined to complete Lithuanian refinery deal The Associated Press Published: November 6, 2006 VILNIUS, Lithuania: Polish President Lech Kaczynski said Monday that Poland's PKN Orlen would not back out of an agreement to buy Lithuania's Mazeikiu Nafta oil refinery despite financial setbacks. "We are determined to complete this deal, which is very important for both Poland and Lithuania, by the end of this year," Kaczynski told reporters during a visit to Lithuania. The statement, made during Kaczynski's visit as part of the annual summit of Polish and Baltic presidents, was applauded by Lithuania's leadership, which has...

Fire damages oil refinery in Lithuania Staff and agencies 12 October, 2006 By LIUDAS DAPKUS, Associated Press Writer 8 minutes ago VILNIUS, Lithuania - Fire broke out at Lithuania‘s only oil refinery Thursday, causing millions of dollars in damage and forcing the evacuation of all its workers, officials said. No injuries were reported. "The fire is still burning, but we can say now that no one has been injured," said Saulius Vorauskas, an official at the refinery, which was sold to Poland‘s PKN Orlen. Prime Minister Gediminas Kirkilas said the damage was significant. Prosecutors launched an investigation into the cause...

Poland determined to go ahead with Lithuanian refinery deal, president says The Associated Press Published: September 5, 2006 VILNIUS, Lithuania The presidents of Poland and Lithuania said Tuesday they were determined to follow through with Poland's US$2.3 billion (€1.8 billion) purchase of a Lithuanian oil refinery, despite supply problems from Russia. Polish President Lech Kaczynski, making a two-day visit to Lithuania, said investors had no intention of bailing out of the purchase of Mazeikiu Nafta, despite a Russian decision to cut crude oil supplies to the Baltics' only refinery. "Poland is very much determined here," he was quoted by the...

PKN Orlen Bidding for Latvian Port Combined Reports RIGA -- Latvia's sale of a 38.6 percent stake in its main oil export terminal, Ventspils, has attracted at least seven or eight foreign suitors, Latvia's economy minister, Aigars Stokenbergs, said Tuesday. The government aims to sell its holding in the terminal in an auction on the Riga stock exchange. The listing, it has said, could take place in October. It has also said it hopes to receive at least $70 million for the stake. "Apart from Poland's PKN Orlen and the Kazakhstan government, Flemings Group and an Austrian Consortium have already...

Lithuanians suspect Russia of dirty tricks By Judy Dempsey International Herald Tribune Published: August 7, 2006 BERLIN: Lithuanian officials asserted Monday that Russia was trying to undermine Poland's purchase of a strategic oil refinery in Lithuania by purposely delaying repairs to a crucial oil pipeline that supplies the refinery. With Russia's energy giants trying to increase their market share both in Eastern and Western Europe, analysts said Monday that the damaged pipeline could weaken competition Russia would face from Orlen, a leading Polish oil refining company. The pipeline was damaged in an accident last month. "The timing of this accident...

Lithuania Pipe Dry, Belarus Gets Oil Supplies By Andrei Makhovsky and Darius James Ross Reuters MINSK -- Russia is keeping Belarus well supplied with crude oil even though it shares a pipeline with Lithuania, which Moscow has cut off, after citing a leak, officials in Belarus said Thursday. Their comments may add to speculation that Russian pipeline monopoly Transneft used this weekend's minor leak as a pretext to cut flows to Lithuania as punishment for choosing a Polish buyer for its Mazeikiu refinery over Russian bidders. Mazeikiu was bought in May by Poland's PKN Orlen. Oil officials in Belarus said...

Lithuanian oil refinery plays down Lukoil threats - report 06.29.2006, 09:57 AM VILNIUS (AFX) - The Mazeikiu Nafta oil refinery said it was continuing to receive supplies of crude oil despite a statement from Russian oil giant Lukoil that said supplying Mazeikiu was 'not worthwhile', the BNS agency reported citing the Lietuvos Rytas newspaper. Poland's PKN Orlen is currently buying a majority stake in the refinery. Some 50,000 tons of oil had been pumped to the Mazeikiu refinery and the Butinge terminal daily for several years. However, the flow of crude started to dwindle a week ago and now amounts...

Poles act to counter Russia power plays Judy Dempsey International Herald Tribune TUESDAY, MAY 30, 2006 BERLIN Despite immense resistance from Russia, the largest energy group in Poland has signed a deal to buy a majority stake in a Lithuanian oil refinery from a subsidiary of Yukos, the energy giant that was bankrupted by Kremlin tax claims. Orlen, the biggest oil refining company in Poland, will pay $1.49 billion to Yukos International UK, based in the Netherlands, for its 53.7 percent stake in the Mazeikiu Nafta refinery. The Lithuanian government will also sell its 30.7 percent stake in the refiner...

US Court Makes YUKOS Happy // Mazeikiu nafta will be sold to a Polish company for $1.425 billion. US court lifted the ban on YUKOS foreign asset sales. Apparently, Dutch company Yukos International UK, that owns 53.7 percent of Lithuanian refinery Mazeikiu nafta (MN), will sign an agreement to sell these shares to Polish PKN Orlen for $1.425 billion today. After that, US court is to resolve the most painful issue for all parties interested in YUKOS—how the returns on MN sale shall be distributed among the disfavored oil company’s creditors. Federal US Bankruptcy Court lifted the ban on YUKOS...