INA WRAPS UP BUSINESS YEAR 2002 WITH PROFIT WORTH EUR 100 MILLION

ZAGREB, Dec 19 (Hina) - The Croatian oil company INA will wrap up the business year 2002 with a profit totalling around 100 million euros, INA management board chairman Tomislav Dragicevic said on Thursday. #L# According to data for the first nine months of this year, INA Group made profits worth one billion kuna, while INA made a profit worth 800 million kuna, management board members told reporters at a Christmas-New Year reception. The company intends to continue with positive results in 2003. Dragicevic claims that there will be no lay-offs, but the company will send into retirement employees who meet old age pension criteria or want to be sent into retirement, and employ new young people. INA will not change its strategy on foreign markets and is soon to start the modernisation of its refinery in Rijeka, while the oil refinery in Sisak will be modernised after 2005. INA and Slovenia's Petrol on Wednesday signed an agreement which re-introduces the Croatian oil producer into the Slovene market. The two companies also signed a contract on the sale of INA products on the Bosnian market. Regardless of problems the company faced after the Bosnian government introduced a regulation on European oil quality standards, INA still covers 65% of the Bosnian market, company officials said. INA is gradually entering the Kosovo market and has signed long- term contracts with Albania. The company has achieved good results in research projects in Syria which will be presented in seven months to a year. Dragicevic estimates that the sale of 25% plus one company share will be completed in the first quarter of next year. Three potential strategic partners - Austria's OMV, Hungary's MOL, and Russia's Rosneft, are to submit binding offers by January 17 2003 and the process of privatisation should be completed by April. (hina) rml sb