Daniel Obajtek, CEO of PKN Orlen, said the merger was necessary for both companies and the Polish economy as a whole.
"This is a historic moment for PKN Orlen, the Lotos group and the Polish economy," he told reporters on Monday.
"The approval of the European Commission brings us closer to increased investment projects of key importance to Poland and the entire region," he added.
Obajtek has previously said that "there is no room in Poland for two such corporations."
PKN Orlen, Poland's largest oil refiner, in 2019 formally asked the European Commission—the executive arm of the European Union of which Poland is part—to greenlight its acquisition of the Lotos group, Poland’s No. 2 refining company.
The Commission in July 2020 said it had approved the move, providing that Orlen meets a number of conditions, including selling 30 percent of shares in a Lotos refinery.
PKN Orlen in January announced a spate of international deals to enable it to take over Lotos in a planned major energy merger.
Referring to the planned merger, Polish Prime Minister Mateusz Morawiecki said in 2019 that “all developed countries have long ago merged their assets in such a way.”
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Source: PAP, orlen.pl