Refinery supplies scheduled and prepared

  • 2004-09-29
  • Baltic News Service
VILNIUS - Countering rumors of an imminent crisis, Mazeikiu Nafta (Mazeikiai Oil) announced on Sept. 27 that it had secured over 2 million tons of crude oil supplies for the fourth quarter of 2004, much of it to be delivered by controlling owner Yukos, the besieged Russian oil major.

"The schedule for crude supplies in the fourth quarter has already been confirmed, putting the expected deliveries at over 2 million tons, which will be supplied by Yukos and Lukoil," said Giedrius Karsokas, the oil company's communication chief.

The refinery began purchasing crude from Lukoil, Russia's second largest crude producer, several months ago, he added. Citing confidentiality arrangements, Karsokas refused to specify whether the crude supply contracts had been signed directly with Yukos or with subsidiaries of the Russian oil major.

A week ago the local media reported that the supply of crude to Mazeikiu Nafta had been taken over by Yuganskneftegaz, Samaraneftegaz and Tomskneft, all of which are production subsidiaries of the oil giant.

Mazeikiu Nafta processed 5.5 million tons of crude oil and other feedstock in the first eight months of 2004, a 29.3 percent rise over the previous year. Mazeikiu Nafta's Butinge terminal handled 5.9 million tons of crude oil in the January-to-August period, a decline of 21.8 percent year-on-year.

Karsokas could not specify the amounts to be exported via the Butinge terminal in the fourth quarter.

With the refinery's crude refining margin surging by 21.1 percent to 238.7 litas (67.3 euros) per ton, the company's consolidated net earnings comprised 232.2 million litas under U.S. GAAP in the first half of 2004, a surge of 3.1 times year-on-year.

Yukos owns 53.7 percent of Mazeikiu Nafta, while the government has a 40.66 percent stake.