This was stated by Bogdan Hossu, head of the national trade union confederation Cartel Alfa, in an interview with DCBusiness. He estimates that the shutdown of the plant could also lead to the loss of around 8,000 jobs. “It is clear that this is creating a social problem,” said Hossu.
The trade union leader also warned of a possible fuel shortage on the domestic market. A prolonged shutdown of the refinery could reduce supply and put further pressure on prices. This would primarily affect agriculture and transport – major sectors that rely on diesel fuel. The consequences could then spread to suppliers, their staff and other sectors of the economy that rely on transport.
Hossu noted that similar problems had previously arisen in Germany and Bulgaria in connection with Lukoil’s assets. According to him, the German authorities appointed a special administrator within a week to ensure that funds from the refinery’s operations did not flow to Russia. In Bulgaria, a similar decision took a month. In Romania, he said, no such administrator has been appointed for 14 months.
Against this backdrop, the Petrotel Lukoil refinery has already entered bankruptcy proceedings. A Romanian court has authorised the start of the proceedings, reports Digi24. A preliminary list of creditors’ claims must be drawn up by 29 September, with the final list to be approved by 23 October. The first creditors’ meeting is scheduled for 3 October.
The company itself has stated that the proceedings are necessary to preserve the business and its assets, protect employees, stabilise relations with partners and prepare for the resumption of production. The aim is not to close the plant, Petrotel representatives emphasised.
The refinery was shut down in October 2025 for scheduled maintenance, but did not resume operations afterwards. The plant was subsequently subject to US sanctions. In March, Romania requested permission from Washington to restart it. The Romanian authorities subsequently reported that they had obtained the necessary sanctions exemptions, but production was never resumed.
It should be noted that Petrotel Lukoil is almost wholly owned by the Swiss company Litasco S.A., which forms part of Lukoil’s international structure. In January, the Russian company announced an agreement with the Carlyle Group to sell its international assets against the backdrop of sanctions.
The Petrotel-Lukoil refinery is located in Ploiești, 55 km from Bucharest, and is one of Romania’s largest refineries. Its annual refining capacity stands at 2.5 million tonnes. The facility came under Lukoil’s ownership in 1998. Part of the output from Petrotel is supplied to Moldova.
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