Acron plans to challenge Polish authorities decision regarding Grupa Azoty

MOSCOW. July 13 (Interfax) - Acron Group intends to challenge the actions of the Polish authorities regarding the shares of the Grupa Azoty chemical holding in the courts of Poland and the European Court, as well as via international arbitration, the Russian company said.

Acron owns a 19.82% stake in Grupa Azoty. The day before, the Ministry of Development and Technology of Poland announced the introduction of compulsory external management of this block of shares for subsequent sale and the securities' re-registration.

Acron considers this a "gross violation" of international law and national legislation. "We consider the actions of the Polish authorities to be unmotivated, unfair and as illegal expropriation, or, to put it simply, robbery," Acron said.

Radoslaw Kwasnitsky, the appointed interim manager, is a member of the supervisory board of one of the Orlen holding companies, and also held a similar position in PKN Orlen SA from 2014 to 2019, Acron said. Therefore, a person with a potential conflict of interest has been appointed manager, as the Orlen holding also produces fertilizers and is a direct competitor to Grupa Azoty and Acron in some markets, while also recently announcing its intention to acquire Grupa Azoty's subsidiary Grupa Azoty Pulawy, the Russian company said.

Acron has owned shares in Grupa Azoty since 2012, but has not actively participated in the management of the company, remaining in the role of a portfolio investor.

Grupa Azoty is one of the largest chemical holdings in Europe, and specializes in the production of engineering plastics, nitrogen and complex fertilizers, oxoalcohols and plasticizers. The group is the fifth largest producer of polyamides in Europe, the only Polish producer of polyoxymethylene and one of the leading producers of mineral fertilizers in the European Union.