Slovnaft is the largest oil refinery

Oil refinery

An oil refinery or petroleum refinery is an industrial process plant where crude oil is processed and refined into more useful petroleum products, such as gasoline, diesel fuel, asphalt base, heating oil, kerosene, and liquefied petroleum gas...

 in Slovakia

Slovakia

The Slovak Republic is a landlocked state in Central Europe. It has a population of over five million and an area of about . Slovakia is bordered by the Czech Republic and Austria to the west, Poland to the north, Ukraine to the east and Hungary to the south...

. It was established in 1957 in Bratislava

Bratislava

Bratislava is the capital of Slovakia and, with a population of about 431,000, also the country's largest city. Bratislava is in southwestern Slovakia on both banks of the Danube River. Bordering Austria and Hungary, it is the only national capital that borders two independent countries.Bratislava...

. In 2000, Slovnaft became part of the Hungarian

Hungary

Hungary , officially the Republic of Hungary , is a landlocked country in Central Europe. It is situated in the Carpathian Basin and is bordered by Slovakia to the north, Ukraine and Romania to the east, Serbia and Croatia to the south, Slovenia to the southwest and Austria to the west. The...

 MOL Group, which owns 98.4 % of the shares. Slovnaft has two foreign branches nowadays: Slovnaft CZ in the Czech Republic

Czech Republic

The Czech Republic is a landlocked country in Central Europe. The country is bordered by Poland to the northeast, Slovakia to the east, Austria to the south, and Germany to the west and northwest....

 and Slovnaft Polska in Poland

Poland

Poland , officially the Republic of Poland , is a country in Central Europe bordered by Germany to the west; the Czech Republic and Slovakia to the south; Ukraine, Belarus and Lithuania to the east; and the Baltic Sea and Kaliningrad Oblast, a Russian exclave, to the north...

. Slovnaft is one of the top three refineries in Europe.

History

Slovnaft is the successor of the Apollo company, which was established in 1895 in Bratislava

Bratislava

Bratislava is the capital of Slovakia and, with a population of about 431,000, also the country's largest city. Bratislava is in southwestern Slovakia on both banks of the Danube River. Bordering Austria and Hungary, it is the only national capital that borders two independent countries.Bratislava...

 and whose refinery was bombarded by the Allies

Allies

In everyday English usage, allies are people, groups, or nations that have joined together in an association for mutual benefit or to achieve some common purpose, whether or not explicit agreement has been worked out between them...

 in June 1944. It was located near today's Apollo Bridge

Most Apollo

Apollo Bridge in Bratislava is a road bridge over the Danube in the capital of Slovakia.The bridge was opened to the public on September 5, 2005. It is named for the "Apollo" oil refinery which was situated on the left river bank in this area before World War II...

. The Apollo company was nationalized and renamed Slovnaft in 1957.

On 1 May, 1992, Slovnaft was reorganized as a join-stock company, as successor to a state enterprise formed by the Czechoslovak Republic government on 1 January 1949. Since 2000, Slovnaft has been a member of the multinational MOL Group, which, in market capitalization terms, is among the six largest companies in Central & Eastern Europe.

Importance

Slovnaft is the flagship of the Slovak economy. Its shares of Slovak GDP and overall industrial production have been 1,5% and 6%, respectively. Despite being a major importer of oil, Slovnaft has a very positive trade balance, having been one of the three largest Slovak exporters for some years. This has positively affected Slovak tax revenues as its share of overall Slovak tax revenues has reached as much as 8%. The advantages of synergies accrued through being a member of MOL Group chiefly manifest themselves in the effective coordination of operations in foreign markets. Three quarters of Slovnaft's production is sold to customers in highly competitive markets such as Germany, Austria, the Czech Republic, Poland, Switzerland, and France. Exports account for 80% of overall company revenues. Slovnaft has been a steady payer of excise duties on mineral oils, accounting for 60% of all such taxes paid.

Production

According to its website, the refinery's annual processing capacities amount to 6 million tonnes of crude oil. It has a production capacity of about 115,000 BPD (barrels per day). In comparison, Exxon Mobil has a production capacity of about 6,4 million BPD. Thanks to a sophisticated investment strategy, it is currently the most efficient refinery in Europe; this is confirmed by independent studies. At the same time, it ranks among the three most modern refineries in Europe. The refinery has a 87% share of oil conversion to quality products with high added value, mostly motor fuels. Using the same volume of oil, Slovnaft can currently produce up to 1 million tons more fuels than in the 1990s. Three fourths of production is sold on the international market. Apart from motor fuels that Slovnaft has produced since 2006 in the quality that will be required by the EU from 2009, the company also produces petrochemical products - polyethylene and polypropylene. They have the capacity to react to demand for bio fuels. In Slovakia, Slovnaft currently operates 209 fuel stations; it is the largest network in this country, providing good availability of quality fuels for drivers. Apart from quality motor fuels, Slovnaft provides its customers with highly demanded additional services. They also support usage of alternative fuels. Its branded LPG - ECO+Autoplyn is sold by 98 of its stations, making Slovnaft the larges seller in Slovakia.

Sponsorship

Slovnaft has been sponsoring the part of Slovak Extraliga

Slovak Extraliga

Slovak Extraliga is the name of the highest-level ice hockey league in Slovakia. As of 2009, it is ranked by the IIHF as the fifth strongest league in Europe. The name of the league is leased to sponsor and changes frequently. From 1993/94 to 1997/98 season it was called Extraliga, then the name...

 Slovnaft Play -off ,leag called from 2011-12 season Tipsport Extraliga, Slovakia's top-level ice hockey

Ice hockey

Ice hockey, often referred to as hockey, is a team sport played on ice, in which skaters use wooden or composite sticks to shoot a hard rubber puck into their opponent's net. The game is played between two teams of six players each. Five members of each team skate up and down the ice trying to take...

 league, since 2007,Slovnaft is general sponsor of Slovakia National Ice Hockey Team too.

See also

• Transpetrol AS, slovakian oil pipeline company, operator of the slovakian section of the Druzhba pipeline
  Druzhba pipeline
  The Druzhba pipeline is the world's longest oil pipeline and in fact one of the biggest oil pipeline networks in the world. It carries oil some from the eastern part of the European Russia to points in Ukraine, Belarus, Poland, Hungary, Slovakia, Czech Republic, and Germany...