Romanian Times reported that the Romanian state is going to take over the refinery Arpechim from the company OMV Petrom.

Prefect of Arges county Mr Gheorghe Davidescu said that negotiations were in their final stage. He added that Arpechim Pitesti would operate under Romanian state ownership in April 2012 at the latest.

In March 2011, the supervisory council of OMV Petrom decided to close the Arpechim Ploiesti Refinery permanently because the company could not find a buyer for it. It then accepted for the refinery to be taken over by the state.

OMV Petrom said that the Arpechim Refinery had been operational for only three months in 2009, due to economic reasons. The over 700 employees who will be laid off will receive compensatory wages of up to EUR 10 million.

It added that "The decision was taken in conformity with Petrom's strategy to maximize profits and to raise efficiency. The option of selling it, which the company had analyzed for one year, has not been achieved, as no credible buyer has been identified, one that has the expertise and financial capabilities to safely and sustainably operate the refinery."

Arpechim is a refinery which does not have access to the sea, it imports crude oil and exports finite products. Arpechim Ploiesti refinery was established in 1964 and it was initially built to be part of a petrochemical complex. It currently has 600 employees.

(Sourced from www.romaniantimes.at)