Unipetrol continues consistently implementing its strategy related to environmental protection and introduction of circular economy principles. Tomasz Wiatrak, Chairman of the Board of Directors of the Unipetrol Group, and member of the Board of Directors Ryszard Pilch have today signed the international declaration, Operation Clean Sweep® (OCS). Under this declaration, the Unipetrol Group will in 2021 start implementing the principles of a programme aimed at the prevention of plastics entering the environment. Introduction of OCS is coordinated by the European association, PlasticsEurope.
“With our continuous improvements and modernisation of operational activities, we at the Unipetrol Group seek to minimise the impact of our activities on the environment. As a significant petrochemical producer, we assume the responsibility for the prevention of plastics entering the environment. That is why we are joining a significant global activity that will enable us to make additional important steps on our path to a long-term sustainable development,” Tomasz Wiatrak, Chairman of the Board of Directors of the Unipetrol Group, comments on the significance of the declaration on accessing the OCS programme.
The global Operation Clean Sweep (OCS) project implemented under the umbrella of PlasticsEurope, a European association of plastics manufacturers, reacts to the adverse development in the environmental pollution caused by plastics. It aims to prevent the spill of plastic particles of all sizes into the environment along the entire plastics value chain. The OCS programme provides businesses active in the plastics industry with guidelines and measures to reduce the risk of spills into the environment resulting from everyday handling and transport or occurred during unexpected extraordinary events.
“By signing the declaration on accessing the OCS programme today, we commit ourselves to adopt effective measures and control mechanisms to prevent the spill of plastics in the form of pellets, powder, or dust into the environment. We will introduce the OCS principles during 2021 in all manufacturing, operational, and logistics activities involving plastic materials. We will also integrate them in the implementation of all new investment projects,” adds Ryszard Pilch, a Member of the Board of Directors of the Unipetrol Group, who is responsible for logistics and transportation of fuels and products.
The Unipetrol Group is the largest refinery and petrochemical company in the Czech Republic. It focuses on crude-oil processing and on the production, distribution and sale of vehicle fuels and petrochemical products – particularly plastics and fertilisers. In all these areas, it belongs among the important players on the Czech and Central European market. The Unipetrol Group encompasses refineries and production plants in Litvínov and Kralupy nad Vltavou, Paramo with its Mogul brand in Pardubice and Kolín, Spolana Neratovice, and two research centres in Litvínov and Brno. Unipetrol also includes a network of 429 Benzina ORLEN filling stations in the Czech Republic and Slovakia. With 416 filling stations in the Czech Republic, Benzina ORLEN is the largest chain on the Czech market. Unipetrol is one of the largest companies in terms of turnover in the Czech Republic. It earned CZK 129 billion last year and employs more than 4,800 persons. In addition to its business development, Unipetrol is proud to be a socially responsible corporation. Therefore, it pays an equal amount of attention to initiatives which focus on the cultivation and support of sustainable development, education, local communities, and the environment. In 2005, Unipetrol became a member of the PKN Orlen Group, the largest crude-oil processor in Central Europe.