Posted on 06/30/2006 12:08:10 PM PDT by lizol
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 to 38,000 tons per day.
'The crude supply figures can be misleading in making final conclusions,' said Redas Kristanavicius, one of Mazeikiu Nafta's directors.
Unless Russian politicians start putting hurdles in Mazeikiu Nafta's way, the refinery will receive over 800,000 tons of crude oil in July, as planned, he said.
Lukoil vice president Leonid Fedun said yesterday that the company was not interested in supplying oil to the Lithuanian refinery since there were more profitable supply routes.
Kristanavicius said, however, that Fedun was saying one thing and Lukoil was doing another. In the director's words, Lukoil asked Transneft for permission to ship more oil to Mazeikiu Nafta in the third quarter than the Russian pipeline monopoly had allowed.
Lukoil, a long-time contender to take control of Mazeikiu Nafta, has been supplying crude oil to Lithuania since 1990.
The Russian oil giant halted supplies to Mazeikiu Nafta several times in the 1990's after Lithuania sold a majority stake in the refinery to the US company Williams International.
One of my employees told me that there is a Lithuanian Song Fest this weekend in Chicago. I know no further details, except that it is a BIG deal.
The Song Festival is this Sunday at the University of Illinois Pavilion.
Mixer at the Park West tonight. It's worth it just to go, stand outside, and watch the girls walk in.
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