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Rafo Onesti, officially bankrupt
The Bacau Tribunal ruled on Thursday the bankruptcy of Rafo Onesti, 11 years after the refinery's activity stopped, according to a press release of the Transylvania Insolvency House (CITR) .
The Rafo bankruptcy comes as a natural consequence of the fact that the investors' intentions did not materialize in a transaction, corroborated with the expiration, on August 22, 2019, of the company's 18-month reorganization plan.
"Rafo Onesti has a symbolic value for the local and regional market for crude oil processing and the petrochemical industry. For Romanians, it is a company with an emotional value, which we all remember with nostalgia. Beyond that, we have to be realistic and note that Rafo is a complex, niche project, with long-term Return on Investment and with implications on several branches. The acquisition of Rafo would have meant only a first step on a path with potential, and the company would have then required sustained investments in both the modernization of the infrastructure, the development of the team of specialists, as well as the assurance of a quality raw material. All these criteria show us that a strong and large investor, agile in an uncertain market, a player most likely at international level," said Vasile Godinca-Herlea, the CEO of CITR, as quoted in the release.
Rafo S.A. was established in 1991 as a trading company. Having two refineries, from that period it worked only through Refinery 2, following the restructuring of the production flow. The crude oil was purchased mainly from imports, Rafo operating mainly with Iranian oil.
The company was forced to halt production in 2008 because it was no longer possible to renew the operating license, as well as in compliance with the provisions of environmental legislation. Between 2004-2010, Rafo went through a period of insolvency, implementing the reorganization plan approved at that time.
Although Rafo carried out a wide range of studies on various development options, between 2015-2016, the company failed to continue the modernization program started in 2008, efforts focusing more on preserving equipment and machinery.