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Polish Oil Company Dismisses Chief Exec
The supervisory board of oil refiner PKN Orlen SA, one of Poland's largest companies, dismissed the firm's chief executive Tuesday over irregularities in his election to the post last month.
The removal of Jacek Walczykowski came less than two weeks after the government succeeded in replacing most of Orlen's supervisory board, winning a battle for control with an influential shareholder, billionaire investor Jan Kulczyk.
Walczykowski, who was appointed chief executive on July 28, was considered close to Kulczyk.
Supervisory board chairman Jacek Bartkiewicz said after a closed-door meeting that the board voted to oust Walczykowski because he was not on the official list of candidates at the time of his appointment.
The supervisory board will meet again Aug. 25 to approve criteria for the election of a new chief executive, Bartkiewicz said. It aims to name a replacement "as soon as possible," he added.
Orlen operates some 1,900 gas stations in Poland and 500 in Germany. The Polish government has expressed interest in selling part of its 28 percent stake in Orlen to an institutional investor this year or next.
Walczykowski, who was a member of Orlen's supervisory board at the time of his appointment, replaced Zbigniew Wrobel, who stepped down amid corruption allegations.
Government officials complained that Walczykowski's appointment violated regulations calling for transparent hiring procedures.
(Source: http://www.forbes.com/home/feeds/ap/2004/08/17/ap1507382.html) |
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