Polish Kedzierzyn mulls coal gasification plant-CEO
Mon Jul 28, 2008 3:58am EDT
reuters.com
WARSAW, July 28 (Reuters) - Polish state-owned chemical maker Zaklad Azotowe Kedzierzyn may begin construction of a coal gasification plant as early as 2010 to diversify its sources of gas, its chief executive was quoted as saying on Monday.
Kedzierzyn, which plans to go public later this year, estimates that the plant will cost around 2 billion zlotys ($975 million) and it is in talks with banks about funding, Krzysztof Jalosinski told the Parkiet daily.
"We hope that once this (second) part of the feasibility study is ready, we could seek the co-financing of the project from the European Union," Jalosinski said.
Poland has Europe's largest deposits of coal. The technology to turn it into gas, the key raw material in fertilizer production, could boost Kedzierzyn's margins as they benefit from rising demand for soil nutrients worldwide.
Kedzierzyn is the second Polish fertilizer maker after Zaklady Azotowe Pulawy PULW.WA to express interest in building a coal gasification plant. Both want to diversify their supplies of gas, which the country imports from Russia.
Pulawy hired U.S. engineering company Bechtel this month to prepare a feasibility study for the installation and said the plant may come on line in 2014, Parkiet reported. (Reporting by Piotr Skolimowski, editing by Anthony Barker)
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