REPAIRS AT MAZEIKIU: The Lithuanian oil refinery Mazeikiu Nafta, operated by the U.S. company Williams International, on Feb. 9 reduced production to begin repairs to its oil refining facility. During the repairs, Mazeikiu Nafta will decrease production by about 20 percent. Spokesman Tadas Augustauskas told BNS the plant would continue to supply to the Lithuanian, Latvian, Estonian and Polish markets at full capacity. The company will not be exporting oil to Great Britain during the repairs. A new catalyst will be installed in the facility, producing fuel oil and light oil products, which will help refine more expensive and marketable products. The new catalyst will reduce the sulfur content in oil products from 0.05 percent to 0.015 percent, bringing them in line with European Union requirements scheduled to take effect in 2005. Mazeikiu Nafta plans to refine 1.5 million tons of oil in the first quarter of this year. In October Mazeikiu Nafta plans to halt production and carry out major repairs for three weeks.
INDUSTRIAL OUTPUT FIGURES: Industrial output in Latvia last year totaled 1.79 billion lats ($2.8 billion), up 8.4 percent from 2000, according to preliminary figures from the bureau of statistics. Production last year grew by 5.8 percent year-on-year in the mining and extracting industry, 9.2 percent in the processing industry and by 5.1 percent in the power, gas and water supply sectors. Last December Latvian industrial output amounted to 152.4 million lats, up 1.6 percent from December 2000, including a 23.3 percent fall in the mining and extracting industry, a 3.1 percent drop in the processing industry and a 20.1 percent increase in electric power, gas and water supply. In food and beverage production year-on-year growth totaled 4.8 percent last December. Furniture production rose 26.1 percent and production of non-metal minerals (ceramics, cement, concrete, etc.) grew 25.9 percent. Output also climbed in rubber and plastic items by 11.5 percent, and electric machinery and equipment by 7.4 percent.
FEZ DISSOLVED: The Lithuanian government on Feb. 6 passed a draft law calling for the dissolution of the free economic zone in Siauliai in the northern part of the country, the government's press service reported. The bill will now be sent to Parliament for enactment. The Siauliai City Council voted to dissolve the free economic zone's status a year ago. One of three economic zones in Lithuania, the Siauliai zone was set up in 1996. The process came to a halt after the government gave part of the territory to the Defense Ministry in 1999. If the bill passes the Parliament, the government will appoint a commission to monitor the dissolution process. The panel will submit proposals on compensation of costs incurred. The Siauliai free economic zone's management company posted an estimated 3.5 million litas ($875,000) in losses. Siauliai officials want to keep Siauliai Airport, which is located within the zone and has the longest runways in Lithuania. Two more FEZs are being established in Kaunas, Lithuania's second-largest city, and the port city of Klaipeda.
EESTI TELEKOM RETURNS: Analysts in Estonia are bullish on Eesti Telekom's future despite a gloomy earnings report issued last week. The company on Feb. 7 announced a net profit in 2001 of 787 million kroons ($46.29 million). Analysts expected a profit of 915 million to 940 million kroons. Toomas Reisenbuk of Trigon Markets said that even with extraordinary items left aside the results of Eesti Telekom were weaker than anticipated. Revenues of mobile subsidiary EMT were at the expected level, but expenses grew rapidly at Eesti Telefon, the company's fixed-line carrier, which failed to deliver on the hope that the trend toward lower profitability would be reversed in the fourth quarter, Reisenbuk said. The operating result of Eesti Telefon was narrowly positive, Reisenbuk said. He expressed hope that profitability at Eesti Telefon would start picking up although the improvement might turn out smaller than expected. Sales should be boosted by an increase in monthly fees and increased data communication demands, Reisenbuk said. Analysts at Hansapank Markets and Uhispank said they were leaving their share price targets for Eesti Telekom unchanged at respectively 100 kroons and 90 kroons. The net profit was affected most of all by extra costs related to write-offs. Uhispank had taken this possibility into account, Danil said. In the future the company's results should improve, Danil said.
LITHUANIAN EXPORTS UP: Lithuanian exports increased 20.3 percent in 2001 compared to 2000, while imports increased by 15.1 percent year-on-year, the country's statistics department announced Feb. 11. Lithuania's exports totaled 18.33 billion litas ($4.58 billion) in 2001, while imports for the year were worth 25.12 billion litas. The country's foreign trade deficit amounted to 6.79 billion litas. In December 2001, exports rose by 9 percent, year-on-year, to 1.35 billion litas, while imports were up by 15.3 percent to 2.44 billion litas.
Please enter your username and password.
2024 © The Baltic Times /Cookies Policy
