Albpetrol

Stock performance

History

Albpetrol was established in its current form in 1999 as the state oil company, inheriting the oil fields and assets developed in central Albania over much of the 20th century, especially under the communist regime. Since then most of its fields have been opened to foreign operators under production-sharing agreements.

Business model

Albpetrol holds the state's rights to Albania's oil and gas fields and earns a share of production from foreign concessionaires, most importantly Bankers Petroleum at the large Patos-Marinza heavy-oil field. It also operates some fields directly.

Market position

Albpetrol is the state oil company in a country whose onshore oil fields, including Patos-Marinza, are among the largest in continental Europe, though the crude is heavy and costly to extract.

Country impact

Crude oil has been one of Albania's main export products, and Albpetrol's revenues and the foreign concessions it oversees are an important source of state income and jobs in the Fier region.