CEO Daniel Obajtek told a news conference on Wednesday that, besides growing its core oil-refining business, the company was also expanding its energy operations.
Obajtek spoke in the northern village of Bajerze, which houses one of PKN Orlen’s two new gas deposits, Polish state news agency PAP reported.
The company has decided to build gas-fired power plants at the two sites rather than transport gas elsewhere, reporters were told.
“Zero-emission energy must be supplemented with low-emission energy - that’s why we are investing in gas-fired power plants,” Obajtek said.
The two sites where the new power plants have been built, Bajerze and nearby Tuchola, are estimated to hold some 1.5 billion cubic metres of natural gas, according to PKN Orlen.
More drilling planned
Their annual gas output is expected to produce 125 GWh of electrical power, enough for a mid-sized city, like nearby Toruń in northern Poland, officials told reporters.
PKN Orlen plans to extract gas and produce power in Bajerze and Tuchola for 14 years, after which the modular power plants can be transferred to new sites, the company said.
“We are planning more drilling for gas and fast, high-return investments,” Obajtek declared.
(pm/gs)
Source: PAP, forsal.pl, TVP Info