Orlen Unipetrol is the largest Czech refining and petrochemical company. It belongs to the Orlen group, headquartered in Poland.[1] It processes crude oil and produces, distributes and sells fuels and petrochemical products, above all plastics and fertilisers.[1] It is the only domestic processor of crude oil and operates both Czech refineries, in Litvínov and in Kralupy nad Vltava.[3]
The group
The group includes refineries and production plants in Litvínov and Kralupy nad Vltavou, the company Paramo in Pardubice, Spolana in Neratovice, Remaq in Otrokovice and a research centre in Brno.[1]
Finances and owner
The company states that since 2018, when the parent group Orlen acquired a 100 percent stake, it has received no dividend from it and invests its earnings in the Czech refineries.[1][3] For 2025 it reported a net loss of just under CZK 6 billion, which after the booking of impairment adjustments reached almost CZK 47 billion. The year before, the net loss was CZK 16 billion.[1][3]
Extraordinary tax on refining margins
At the end of September 2026 the government approved an extraordinary tax on refining margins for 2026 and 2027, set at 50 percent of the increase in gross margin compared with 2025. It applies to companies with annual revenues of at least CZK 2 billion and revenues from refining activity of at least CZK 50 million.[1] Finance Minister Alena Schillerová justified it by saying that part of the extraordinary earnings of the refining sector should help finance the costs of the crisis.[2] On 29 September 2026 chief executive Mariusz Wnuk stated that the tax raises constitutional doubts because of its retroactive effect and because it affects a single company, and that it will limit funds for the modernisation of the refineries.[1][2][3]
Chronology
- — The company Orlen Unipetrol expressed doubts about the constitutionality of the new tax on refinery margins and stated that it may endanger investment. → ČTK / České noviny iDNES.cz
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Sources
- ČTK / České noviny — 29 September 2026
- iDNES.cz — 29 September 2026
- Novinky.cz — 29 September 2026