TIRANA, June 17 – Almost two years after being taken over by an Azerbaijani company, the country’s biggest oil refiner, ARMO, is heading toward bankruptcy because of rising amounts of accumulated debts to creditors and the government in unpaid taxes.
Local media report both government which has a 15 percent stake in the refinery and the company owners are working on a solution that would put the company back under state control.
The company’s debts are reported at $267 mln, of which $207 million to commercial banks.
TPD-Trading Petrol & Drilling” an Albanian operator part of the Sulaj Progres Group which also operates in real estate development and entertainment industry, has recently purchased 100,000 tonnes of crude from state-run Albpetrol oil company for around $31 million (€28.7 mln) at 72 percent of crude oil Brent price of around $66 a barrel.
The oil will be processed at ARMO’s refinery in Ballsh based on a deal between the two companies.
A state inspectorate has suspended Albania’s ARMO oil refiner on environmental grounds and damaging local agriculture products.
Back in 2013, an Azerbaijan-based company took over the majority 80 percent stake in Albania’s ARMO oil refiner for an undisclosed figure as the company had been blocked by tax authorities and was involved in a chain of debts with banks and other market operators.
In its 2015 programme, government plans to sell its 14.9 percent minority share in ARMO oil refiner for 22 million Euros.
With 1,500 employees throughout Albania, ARMO operates two refineries with a refining capacity of 1.5 million tons per year, three wholesale branches, a research facility, and an import/export terminal. The total storage capacity is 220,000 cubic meters.
