CEE governments would save petchems with state aid - official

14 October 2009 16:17  [Source: ICIS news]

PRAGUE (ICIS news)--Governments in central and eastern Europe (CEE) are likely to step in to save ailing petrochemical industries if they require large-scale state assistance, a senior Czech offical said on Wednesday.

"It is highly probable that the states would do their best to save their strategic petrochemical assets, the way they have done in the automobile sector,“ Michael Mares, secretary to the Czech Ministry of Foreign Affairs Ambassador for Energy Security, told an industry conference.

Petrochemical industries were typically threatened by recession-hit demand and over-dependence on Russian crude oil for feedstock, he said.

Various scenarios could see feedstock supply reduced or cut off in the future, Mares told the World Refining Association's annual CEE Refining and Petrochemicals Conference.

CEE countries should continue work to interconnect pipeline systems that sourced oil from countries other than Russia, he added.

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By: Will Conroy
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