Bratislava, 30 November 2018 – Slovnaft is again the most trusted brand in the filling station segment. This has been decided by Slovak consumers in one of the most extensive surveys focused on customer trust. At the turn of September and October, 2,000 respondents became involved in the 3^rd annual marketing program to rate nearly 420 brands in 47 categories.  

A survey conducted by the research agency Nielsen has shown that Slovak consumers are relatively constant and loyal when it comes to trust. Out of 35 “traditional categories”, as many as 25 last year winners have defended their primacy. The filling stations category was included in the rating for the second time and Slovnaft was again its winner.

Slovnaft operates in the Slovak market the country´s biggest network of 253 filling stations. Modern Fresh Corner shops and cafes are located in the majority of them. In addition to fresh coffee, these also offer on-site baked sweet and salt pastry and fast snacks.

• on 6 January, Dakar Rally starts its 41st edition in Lima, Peru
• the expedition´s motorcycle and accompanying vehicles set sail to South America on 23. November, with SLOVNAFT Rally Team scheduled to fly to Peru in late December 2018.

The most successful Slovak motorcycle racer, triple European champion and a fresh 20-time endure and cross-country Slovak champion, Štefan Svitko, will be racing in the prestigious Dakar Rally once again in the colours of Slovnaft Rally Team.

This will be his jubilee tenth start in the world´s toughest motor race. The upcoming 41^st annual Dakar starts on 6 January in the Peruvian capital Lima, where the race is also slated to finish on 17 January 2019. This annual race will also be unique in that the entire rally will occur in Peruvian territory only. The route length is some 5,000 kilometres, of which as much as 70% are sandy roads.

In this race, Štefan Svitko will also seek to deliver the best possible result. Following his last year´s fall, he is already well health-wise and at the moment fully occupied with getting prepared. “I am planning on making best use of the end of the year to get prepared. I would like to fly to South America with a feeling that I am prepared in physical and mental terms alike. I had trained the sand dunes ahead of us in Peru in Morocco where I had been virtually during the whole of October. I do know what I am going to undergo, nevertheless the rough conditions may always take by surprise with something new, Accordingly, Dakar is always the biggest challenge.”

In August, Štefan defended his last year´s win in Serres Rally 2018 where he won on all of the seven competition days of this Greek adventure. The hot Peruvian Dakar will put through their paces not only Štefan´s fitness and riding skills but also the motorcycle whose flawless running will be provided by MOL Dynamic oils, including motor oils intended even for extreme operating conditions.

Svitko will start with number 11 on the latest KTM 450 Rally Replica with factory support from the motorcycle manufacturer outright at the Dakar. Within SLOVNAFT Rally Team, Štefan will be seconded at the Dakar by the well-proven pair - mechanic Zlatko Novosád and Martin Kubačka in charge of logistics and information transfers from the current event back to home in Slovakia. Other team members proven through last year´s Dakar will include Dominik Žažo and Dominik Guláš.

Since his 2010 Dakar premiere, Štefan Svitko has taken part in all the annual races with Slovnaft´s support. At his very first Dakar event, he came thirteenth in the motorcycle category, becoming the most successful newcomer. The following year, he failed to finish Stage 8 owing to a motorcycle breakdown and had to resign. Two years later, he had an unpleasant fall and dropped out of the race just three stages to go. In 2013, he came in ninth place yet in 2012 and 2015 he took the fifth rungs overall. In 2016, he triumphed in second place. Last year, he untimely called it a day at Dakar after a horrible fall in Stage 10 and for an arm injury.

The Slovak representative´s fans can watch the current goings-on throughout the race, including interesting behind-the-scenes information, at: www.facebook.com/StefanSvitkoFanklub.

Contact:

Anton Molnár
Head of Corporate and Marketing Communications
phone: +421 905 393 161

The Ekopolis Foundation in co-operation with the partner, SLOVNAFT, a.s., announces the 13^th annual grant program Green Oases. The topic of this year´s annual environmental program is preserving our natural heritage and related tree planting. A sum of €60,000 will be divided among the best projects.  

As with the previous years´ annual programs, also this year´s annual program intends to respond to the current topics widely echoed in our society. The Ekopolis Foundation´s Program Manager, Milan Hronec, speaks of the need to devote oneself to planting trees: ”It is becoming increasingly obvious that climatic change we have not experienced to date immediately concern us as well. Prolonged periods of extreme heat and drought, on the other hand torrential rains. The development impact upon disposal of the existing verdure, particularly in the urban environment, needs to be added to this. In the countryside, another phenomenon is in turn noticeable - disposal of forest and riverside vegetation, and already of individual trees, including traditional fruit tree species along countryside roads. Maria Theresa issued a decree back then that alleys be planted along pathways, which not only designated them but also made people travelling agreeable. The significant landscaping impact of such planting is not negligible, either. Many alleys make up a major part of our cultural and natural heritage to date. Accordingly, the motto of the current year´s annual program Green Oases is: Let us plant trees!”.

The grant program Green Oases has already supported for 13 years now active citizens in non-profit organisations, local self-governments, school facilities and leisure centres in creating, renewal or revival of environmentally valuable locations and routes. The primary objective of the program is to promote permanent care of environmentally valuable locations that serve the general public, to encourage environmental protection and sustainability.

As many as 189 applicants became involved in the first round of last year´s annual program Green Oases, of which 107 projects were shortlisted by the advisory committee of the grant program. The program Green Oases is thus a visible proof of a strong interest in the environment and of an increasingly greater involvement by local communities. Inspirational examples include such implemented projects as a community garden at Vrbovec, a Garden Zone for immobile people at Olichovo, or a student-restored orchard at Banská Štiavnica that will serve in addition to learning courses to arrange for a variety of cultural and societal activities.

”Our intention is to get as many people as possible active through the program Green Oases in order for them to start being interested in their environs, to be keen on reshaping it, and not to be indifferent to it. The funds provided by Slovnaft are of importance, however the biggest contribution and success guarantee for the supported project is personal engagement by everyone who will lend a helping hand,” says Anton Molnár, Head of SLOVNAFT, a.s., Corporate and Marketing Communications.

The application deadline is 3 December 2018. The best proposals will be shortlisted from among the received applications by an expert commission in January 2019. For detailed information on the grant call and options of how to apply for a grant in the program Green Oases, see:  www.ekopolis.sk, www.oazy.sk a www.slovnaft.sk.

More information is also available from the Ekopolis Foundation Program Manager, Milan Hronec, at 048 / 470 10 95, 0911 452 457, This email address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it..

• Slovnaft operates the largest Slovak chain of Fresh Corner cafés
• another 13 cafés and in the next year 48 cafés will be added to the current 167 operations at 253 service stations this year
• over 20,000 cups of coffee are sold each day in the Fresh Corner chain

BRATISLAVA, 19 October 2018 - Slovnaft is the largest Slovak chain of cafés operating in service stations under the name Fresh Corner. Currently more than 20,000 cups of coffee are sold in 167 operations a day, and another 61 cafés will be added in December and next year. At Fresh Corner, Slovaks have been particularly fond of the quality coffee prepared from over 50 tons of coffee bean every year. The most popular drink is espresso.

Slovnaft opened the first Fresh Corner service stations in July 2015 in Záhorská Bystrica, Lučenec and Vyšný Kubín. Besides fresh coffee, Fresh Corner offers sweet and delicious pastries and snacks. Selected service stations also offer fresh vegetable, fruit salads and healthy drinks – smoothies. At the end of last year, this gastronomic concept grew with the Fresh Corner Restaurant.

Slovnaft invested more than 80 million euros in 2015 in its retail network, including modernization and rebuilding.  This year, for example, the highway service stations in Zeleneč and Dolná Streda were fully reconstructed.   Next year, Slovnaft plans to invest almost €27 million in the retail network.

“Fresh Corner currently represents the brand of the largest café chain in Slovakia. In the Czech Republic and Hungary, we also opened Fresh Corner cafés outside of the service stations and we are also thinking about it in our country,” said Timea Reicher, head of the Slovnaft retail network.

A recent Slovnaft survey focused on the drinking habits of Slovaks showed that coffee is an important part of the lives of up to 90% of respondents, who enjoy it at least once a day. Most people have their coffee right after waking up in the comfort of home. Up to seven out of ten people, when choosing a place to buy coffee, focus on its quality and then on the atmosphere and the price/quality ratio.

• residents and visitors of Bratislava can use the service of shared city bicycles Slovnaft Bajk since today
• 550 smart bikes will be available at 73 docking stations in four capital city districts - Staré Mesto, Nové Mesto, Ružinov and Petržalka
• an unlimited riding program with a duration of up to 30 minutes costs 1 euro

BRATISLAVA, September 7, 2018 - The service of shared bicycles Slovnaft BAjk started today in Bratislava. A new form of public transport will bring faster and cheaper transportation within the capital. The joint project of the capital and Slovnaft was ceremonially launched by the mayor of Bratislava Ivo Nesrovnal and the CEO of Slovnaft Gabriel Szabó.

"After Paris, Vienna or Barcelona, also Bratislava has its bikesharing. Our city will get into the line within other more than 30 countries where this alternative, ecological and fast form of urban transport is provided. I am glad that our effort has brought an effective and modern bicycle rental system that Bratislava residents as well as the city visitors will use in the next years, " said Bratislava Mayor Ivo Nesrovnal.

At the initial start-up phase, 550 smart bikes will be available at 73 docking stations. The number of bicycles and docking stations will gradually increase in the coming weeks. During a first year of its pilot operation, a total of 750 bicycles and 90 stations should be in the streets in our four city districts – Staré Mesto, Nové Mesto, Ružinov and Petržalka. The locations of the stations were selected in such a way that it is possible to connect the users to cycling routes and transitions in the use of Bratislava public transport as easily as possible. Docking stations are located at a distance of approximately 300 to 500 meters. Locations may vary continuously depending on users' interest in this service.

Bicycles for Slovnaft BAjk were produced in the European Union according to the requirements of both project partners. Each bike contains a GPS in addition to a built-in computer to constantly keep track of it. A special aluminum frame ensures a lower weight of the bicycle and thus a more comfortable ride. Enhanced tires are more resistant to defect, and even in the event of damage, the user can take a few hundred meters to bring the bike back to one of the stations. Each bicycle was tested before it was put into operation.

The price for the use of the Bratislava bikesharing will be one euro in the first months. For this symbolic sum, each user will receive an unlimited number of rides of up to 30 minutes and a credit of 1 euro to cover the payment for the trip over the free minutes. After spending of free minutes, the bicycle is charged with 12 cents for the each completed 6-minute drive.

Using bicycles is simple and user-friendly. Before renting a bicycle you need to register at www.slovnaftbajk.sk and pay 1 euro. Subsequently, the interested party will receive by SMS the 8-digit PIN code for the unlocking of the bicycle. With this code you can then borrow a free bike and return it to any Slovnaft BAjk docking station.

"By launching Slovnaft BAjk, we are entering a new business segment and thus fulfill our company's strategy to offer our customers also other, innovative services. I would like to ask all people - cyclists, pedestrians and drivers to be eye-catching and behaving with respect for the sake of maximum safety on the road," said CEO of SLOVNAFT, a.s. Gabriel Szabó.

After the termination of the yearly pilot operation, both partners will evaluate the project and will consider the extension of the bicycle sharing service to other parts of Bratislava. Slovnaft has invested 1.5 million euros into the bikesharing, the capital city investments were approximately 500,000 euros.

• Slovnaft has installed at its service station on Prístavná street in Bratislava the first electric charging station under the NEXT-E project in Slovakia
• by the end of 2018 four more electric vehicle chargers will be added at Slovnaft filling stations
• under the NEXT-E project will to build up 18 electric vehicle charging stations and 7 ultrafast electric vehicle charging stations, many of them at Slovnaft filling stations in Slovakia

BRATISLAVA, 4 September 2018 – The customers of the state-of-the-art service station in the Slovnaft network on Prístavná street in Bratislava can use a new service. Slovnaft has installed here the first electric vehicle charger under the NEXT-E project in Slovakia. Four more electric vehicle stations are to be added in Slovakia´s biggest network of filling stations by the end  of the year. The NEXT-E project supported by the European Union foresees the development of a charging station network for electric vehicles across six Central and Eastern European countries.

The customers can charge their electric vehicles at Slovnaft charging station on Prístavná street using AC connector Type 2  as well as CHAdeMO and CCS DC connectors. Motorists can charge here two cars at the same time, combining electric current with a power of 50 kW and alternating current with a power 22 kW. The charging comfort is provided by the reserved parking spaces marked out by a specific green colour featuring a charging station icon. The estimated charging time per electric vehicle is approximately 30 minutes to charge the battery to 80 %. The service is currently free.

”Our objective under the Strategy 2030 is to provide people on roads with the best and most in-demand  services which currently already include the e-mobility support as well. We intend to transform also this way our retail activities in order to become customers´ first choice,” said SLOVNAFT, a.s., Retail Director Timea Reicher.

The European Commission has selected the NEXT-E project for co-funding via the Connecting Europe Facility (CEF) under which 222 fast charging stations and 30 ultrafast charging stations are to be installed in the Czech Republic, Hungary, Slovenia, Croatia, Romania and Slovakia. The NEXT-E consortium has been awarded an 18.84 million € grant to develop e-mobility and car owners will be allowed to travel across selected countries by the electric vehicles thanks to this integrated charging station network. The consortium members include the E.ON Group companies (Západoslovenská energetika in Slovakia, the Czech E.ON Czech Republic, the Hungarian E.ON Hungary, the Romanian E.ON Romania), the MOL Group companies (represented by the branches in all the six countries involved), Hrvatska elektroprivreda in Croatia, PETROL (in Slovenia and Croatia), as well as Nissan and BMW.

The NEXT-E project is currently Europe´s one of the largest e-mobility development project and has been awarded one of the highest grants in this area. Totally 18 fast electric and 7 ultrafast electric vehicle charging stations will be build up under the NEXT-E project in Slovakia. The instalment of all the electric charging stations in the six countries will be undertaken by the end of 2020.

• Collection containers are currently available at 162 Slovnaft petrol stations and at three additional locations
• Most of the oil was collected by residents in Bratislava
• The petrol station which collected a record amount of oil is located in Pezinok

BRATISLAVA, August 20, 2018 - The popularity of recycling in Slovakia is increasing, as evidenced by almost doubling year-to-year the collected quantity of used cooking oil as part of the project “Every drop of oil counts”. Through this project Slovnaft collected used cooking oil at 162 petrol stations and three other collection points. This oil is then transferred to the company Meroco, where after cleaning it is used to produce a biofuel component for diesel fuel. In the first half of 2018, the Slovaks handed over 29,000 kilograms of used cooking oil at Slovnaft's collection points.

Compared to the same period last year, the volume of collected used oil has increased to almost double the volume. While in the first half of 2017 the volume of collected oil in the containers marked with the logo “Every drop of oil counts” was 14,900 kilograms of oil, this year it was more than 29,000 kilograms. Used cooking oil can be delivered to 162 Slovnaft petrol stations all over Slovakia, as well as to three other collection points located in Vlčie hrdlo in Bratislava, the Old Market in the centre of the capital and the refinery terminal in Kľačany. Thus, for each individual collection point, there is almost 180 kilograms of oil.

Most of the oil was collected in Bratislava, where Slovnaft has been providing the service for the longest period of time. The citizens of Bratislava are allowed to hand over their oil at 24 petrol stations. In the first half of 2018, these stations collected more than 6.3 tons, which is more than a fifth of all the oil collected. The petrol station with the record amount of oil in the first half of the year is located in Pezinok on Myslenická Street, which has offered an oil collection service since the autumn of 2015. People from Pezinok brought here more than 1.3 tons of oil over the first six months of the year.

The possibility to dispose of used cooking oil from households is currently offered by almost three quarters of all Slovnaft petrol stations. “We are trying to get this service as close as possible to people, so we are assessing every single petrol station and whether it meets the requirements for storing used cooking oil. In cooperation with our partner company Meroco, we will also be able to expand our network of collection points within petrol stations to cities and municipalities where oil is not yet collected” says Anton Molnár, Director of Business and Marketing Communication at SLOVNAFT, a.s.

The used cooking oil is further processed. After cleaning, it is used to produce a biofuel component for diesel fuel. From one litre of cooking oil we are able to produce up to 0.9 litres of biofuel component. Any vegetable oil with the exception of coconut, which solidifies at room temperature, is suitable for collection. It is important to collect such oil in a clean and dry plastic bottle or the original packaging without any food residue, to pour it through a sieve and hand the bottle to the assistant at the petrol station. For every decilitre of delivered oil, Slovnaft's customers will earn one point for the loyalty BONUS Club.

The environmentally orientated project “Every drop of oil counts” was launched by Slovnaft in 2011. Since then this service has expanded from the initial 10 petrol stations to the current 162. Over the course of seven years, more than 94 tonnes of oil have been collected and recycled. Matej Sabol, CEO of Envien Group which Meroco is a part of, adds: “As a biofuel producer, we feel social responsibility and we are interested in solving problems that can cause the inappropriate disposal of used cooking oil. Instead of the oil being put down the kitchen sink and thus burdening the environment or causing problems with pipes and other problems in waste water treatment plants, it will be recycled and used for biofuel production. This is added to diesel fuel, which significantly reduces the amount of CO2 in the exhaust gasses. CO2 has a major and negative impact on climate change, which is a hot topic of global concern for us all. Simply put - from problematic waste in the form of used cooking oil, we can produce a useful product in the form of an ecological fuel.”

• following the testing of the Bratislava bikesharing Slovnaft BAjk, the company Slovnaft and the Bratislava – Capital City of Slovakia have requested time for its fine tuning in order to offer the public a user-friendly and comfortable service
• the service in Bratislava will gradually be launched during the summer months

BRATISLAVA, 28 June 2018 – The Bratislava and SLOVNAFT, a.s., have arranged the launch of the Bratislava bikesharing Slovnaft BAjk for the beginning of the summer holidays. Following internal service testing, the partners have requested time to fine tune the service in order to enhance the user experience.

Within the introduction of the new European General Data Protection Regulation (GDPR), the project partners have also decided on additional safety measures within the system administration. Both partners at the same time work with new suggestions from cycling organisations and future users about the location of the docking stations. Thus, the map of the system already available will be supplemented to include new locations during the pilot scheme.

The Slovnaft BAjk service will be launched by the Bratislava in co-operation with Slovnaft during the summer months. Initially, it will be about testing the system in the streets of Bratislava with those selected users from Slovnaft, city council employees and selected members of the public who have become involved in a competition via www.slovnaftbajk.sk.

The Slovnaft BAjk service is part of new business activities within the MOL Group whose members include Slovnaft. Under the MOL Group´s strategy, the area of sharing economy should be one of the major roles by 2030. The MOL Group is already into its fourth year of support and cooperation in the Budapest bikesharing network under the brand-name MOL Bubi and also launched a carsharing scheme called MOL Limo in January 2018.

• Stercorat has built a new production line for the production of liquid ammonium thiosulfate fertilizers in the Bratislava refinery
• the joint investment of the partners reached 18 million Euros, the annual production capacity being 50,000 tonnes
• the construction of the fluid fertilizer production line is in accordance with the 2030 strategy of Slovnaft and its parent company, the MOL Group – to increase the flexibility of the refineries, introduce new products, and thus expand its value chain

BRATISLAVA, 8 June 2018 – The production of fertilizers for agriculture in the Bratislava refinery will commence this year. Stercorat Hungary, in cooperation with Slovnaft, has built a new production line here for the production of fluid fertilizers. The investment of both partners reached 18 million Euros. Production will commence in June 2018, with an anticipated annual production capacity of 50,000 tonnes. The operation of this line will have a positive impact on the environment by reducing sulphur dioxide (SO₂) emissions.

"The expansion of the Bratislava refinery’s production portfolio is in line with our 2030 strategy to increase the production of non-fuel products. At the same time, the new product expands our value chain in oil refining, moving even closer to the end-consumers than we are today," said CEO of SLOVNAFT, a.s., Gabriel Szabó.

"Technology for the production of ammonium thiosulfate (ATS) was supplied by the American company ThioSolv. The fertilizer will be produced from gases generated in the refinery during the oil refining process. Up to this point, Slovnaft has processed these gases in its own sulphur production unit. In addition to the new product, the new technology also brings significant reductions in emissions," said the head of the Stercorat Hungary Kft. branch - SK head, Marek Hajdu.

The aim of MOL Group is to become the leading chemical company in Central Europe by 2030. In its strategy, which includes several projects at the Slovnaft refinery, it has announced that it wants to produce many more valuable products that are used, for example, in the automotive industry, construction, or the production of electronics.

• the bike-sharing service in Bratislava will be called Slovnaft BAjk
• installation of docking stations started in the middle of May in four city districts - Staré Mesto, Nové Mesto, Ružinov and Petržalka
• at the beginning, the system will consist of 90 docking stations and 750 smart bikes
• the partners open a competition via slovnaftbajk.sk within which participants may win a two-month program for use at no charge of the Bratislava bike-sharing system 

BRATISLAVA, 15^th of May 2018 – The bike-sharing system in Bratislava called Slovnaft BAjk is shaping up. The installation of docking stations of the system started in May. In June, already 90 docking stations will be ready for operation of the system and Bratislava inhabitants will have 750 bikes in total at disposal. This is the first phase of the project the pilot operation of which will commence before summer holidays, i.e. by the end of the 2^nd quarter of 2018.

“Bratislava will have a very functional, modern and attractive bicycle sharing system as we know it from many European countries. I am glad that our city will be joining more than 30 European metropolises where this system works successfully. Bikesharing in Bratislava will be the largest project of its kind in the Slovak Republic,” said Ivo Nesrovnal, the Mayor of Bratislava City. 

During the following weeks, new docking stations will be installed in the streets of Bratislava. Slovnaft and the Capital of the SR, Bratislava, will install 10 smart docking stations and 80 classical docking stations in total in four most populated city districts of Bratislava. Localities for the stations have been selected to facilitate, to the maximum possible extent, the access of users to cycling routes and the public transport system in Bratislava. Docking stations will be situated approximately 300 up to 500 meters one from another. Initially, they will not function until the launch of a short testing phase lasting 48 hours with participation of selected users. Immediately after the testing phase, the pilot phase of the project intended for the public will commence before summer holidays, i.e. by the end of the 2^nd quarter of 2018. 

Smart bikes for the Bratislava bike-sharing system are manufactured in the European Union, as a turnkey project, in compliance with the requirements of both project partners. In addition to a built-in computer, each bike contains a GPS device thanks to which bikes will be monitored constantly. The special aluminium frame guarantees a lower weight of the bike and thus a more comfortable ride when compared to other bikes used within bike-sharing systems across Europe. Sovnaft BAjks are made from a special material which fact eliminates the possibility of damage or theft. 

Furthermore, the SLOVNAFT, a.s. company has introduced an interactive questionnaire via www.slovnaftbajk.sk offering the opportunity to participate in the competition within which you may win a two-month bike-sharing program voucher or a stylish city bike seat cover. 

 “Slovnaft BAjk is the first service of the Slovnaft that goes beyond its traditional range of business activities. Through the partnership within the project we fulfil the strategy of our company aimed at offering clients also other and innovative services,” explained Gabriel Szabó, CEO of SLOVNAFT, a.s.

Use of the bike-sharing system will mean four basic benefit for users - faster transport across the Capital, transport cost savings, physical condition improvement, and emission reduction, i.e. environmental protection.