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Polish oil refiner and fuel retailer, PKN Orlen, reported that 85% of stocked items at its 1,800 service stations are produced in Poland and sourced from 170+ Polish suppliers. With a Polish eagle as a logo in Polish red and white colours, patriotic sourcing seems natural for a conglomerate that is 27.59% owned by the Polish Treasury.

With revenues of $29b USD, Orlen’s patriotic pursuits extend to a proposed merger with fellow Polish oil refiner, LOTOS Group ($7.9b USD revenues) which itself is 53% owned by the Polish Treasury. This comes on the back of Orlen acquiring a majority stake in electricity supplier Energa ($3.2b USD) and lining up a majority stake in state-owned gas supplier PGNiG ($11.4b USD).

The M&A strategy of Orlen is backed by the Polish government as it aims to strengthen regional energy security through the expansion of LNG terminal storage capacity in the port cities of Gdynia and Gdansk, the building of a gas pipeline to Norway, establishment of offshore wind farms generating 3.8 GW by 2030 (rising to 28 GW by 2050), and a plan to construct several nuclear power plant blocks that will add 6 – 9 gigawatts to the Polish grid by 2043.