​PKN ORLEN has donated 32 modern vehicles to the National Revenue Administration (NRA) to help with roadside fuel transport inspections. The Group will also equip the NRA with communication systems for 200 specialised vehicles. Worth over PLN 15.5m, the donations aim to support the government efforts designed to combat informal fuel trade, which have helped PKN ORLEN to increase diesel and gasoline sales by, respectively, 48% and 26% in recent years.

The Group had previously donated 15 vehicles equipped with digital communication systems and seven mobile laboratories to the tax authorities.

‘Businesses are the driving force of an economy, and it is the government’s duty to support them, help them strengthen their market position and foster a level playing field. This is the role of the National Revenue Administration as well, which strives to provide equal opportunities for businesses to succeed. The agency responds to the expectations of those who want a level playing field for all market participants. Its achievements demonstrate that it fully delivers on its goals. But this would not have been possible without its partnership with PKN ORLEN. The Group has collaborated with the NRA for several years now, providing effective tools to combat informal trade in fuels. This collaboration has helped to even better protect the state budget’s interests and counteract any attempts to steal from the taxpayer,’ said Jacek Sasin, Deputy Prime Minister and Minister of State Assets.

The curtailment of illegal trade has had a positive effect on the Group’s performance. From 2015 to 2019, fuel sales at ORLEN service stations grew significantly, with diesel sales up 48%, to 17.4m tonnes, and gasoline sales up 26%, to 4.7m tonnes. Over the same period, PKN ORLEN’s revenue increased by almost 26%.

‘The regulatory package for the fuel market implemented by Prime Minister Mateusz Morawiecki and other measures taken by the government to combat informal fuel trade are bringing tangible financial benefits. Four years after the entry into force of the legislation that delivered a blow to dishonest operators, the fuel market has been brought to order. PKN ORLEN has benefitted from that, delivering revenue growth, and so has the government budget, with higher tax receipts flowing from legitimate businesses as a result of successful tax system tightening measures,’ noted Daniel Obajtek, President of the PKN ORLEN Management Board.

The Group has paid over PLN 8.5bn to the government budget for the first quarter of this year alone. The figure for the second quarter of 2020 exceeded PLN 7bn. The amount paid on account of various taxes in 2019 was in excess of PLN 38bn. Back in 2015, when the fuel package was not yet in force, it was almost PLN 13bn less, at approximately PLN 25bn. PKN ORLEN has paid more than PLN 148.5bn in total to the government budget over the past four and a half years. This compares to just over PLN 162bn in budget revenue contributed over the eight years when the Civic Platform and Polish Peasants’ Party coalition government was in power, which failed to take any action against unofficial trade in fuels.

Seeking to sustain the positive effects of the illegal trade curtailment effort, PKN ORLEN continues to collaborate with the National Revenue Administration, having donated 32 brand new Opel Vivaro vehicles with a total value of PLN 4.5m to the agency. In order to ensure faster and smoother communication during inspections, the Group will equip the NRA with communication systems for 200 vehicles. This donation amounts to over PLN 11m.

‘Our partnership with PKN ORLEN is bringing very tangible results. The NRA carried out over 500,000 inspections in 2019, in which more than 6,500 irregularities were detected. Between January and June of this year, more than 2,100 irregularities were identified during 227,000 roadside inspections. Each mobile laboratory tests on average some 20 samples per month. This year alone, the tests have shown six irregularities, mainly relating to the presence of heavy oil in the samples,’ said Magdalena Rzeczkowska, Deputy Minister of Finance and Head of the National Revenue Administration.

Last year, PKN ORLEN furnished the agency with 15 modern vehicles, which were also equipped with digital communication systems. They are a meaningful addition to the car fleet operated by the NRA in nine provinces, and they are used primarily during roadside inspections and airport inspections at the Warsaw, Kraków and Katowice airports. In 2017 and 2018, PKN ORLEN supplied the NRA with seven mobile laboratories enabling fast testing of fuels imported into and transported across Poland.