PKN has no plans to sell Czech unit -CEO in paper

...quoted as saying on Tuesday.

Eni last Thursday doubled its stake in CRC, also known as Ceska Rafinerska, to 32 percent by buying out ConocoPhillips .

"(Eni) has not submitted any offer," PKN chief executive Piotr Kownacki said in daily Parkiet when asked to comment on speculation that Eni wanted to acquire a majority of CRC.

CRC is 51-percent owned by Czech downstream oil group Unipetrol , a unit of PKN Orlen.

"There are no talks on this subject and Unipetrol is not interested in getting rid of its shares in this company," Kownacki said.

Kownacki also said PKN wants to expand its retail petrol station business in Lithuania and Latvia to increase its market share in these two countries to over 15 percent.

He added the company is considering entering Estonia a few years down the road.

"From 27 stations in Lithuania we will have around 200 in Lithuania and Latvia by 2012," Kownacki said.

PKN's chief said the group will continue to search for crude oil reserves to acquire and is analysing several dozen projects in central Asia, the Middle East, and North Africa.

In addition, PKN has identified a new country which could be potential location for a crude oil deposit purchase.

"I can't say which (country) it is, especially since it is being considered very seriously," Kownacki said. "It's a small country, outside the regions I've mentioned, and also not Russia and not the North Sea shelf."

[WARSAW/Reuters/Finance.cz]