Nitrogen works in Tarnów-Mościce

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The nitrogen works in Tarnów-Mościce (formerly Zakłady Azotowe in Tarnów-Mościce SA , today Grupa Azoty SA ) are a chemical company in Mościce , a district of Tarnów . During the Second Polish Republic , it was one of the most modern factories in Europe and one of the largest investments in Poland during the interwar period .

Building history of the nitrogen works in Tarnów

The development of the Polish chemical industry started with Ignacy Mościcki , a professor at the Technical University of Lviv, who became the director of the nitrogen compounds factory in the Royal Ironworks (later Chorzów ), which was taken over by the Germans after the Silesian uprisings .

The research institute founded by Mościcki in Warsaw developed plans to expand the chemical industry by building a second large nitrogen plant. The final decision to build the new factory near Tarnów was made on March 12, 1927.

On May 14, 1927, Vorwerk estates with an area of ​​670 hectares were purchased from the Sanguszko family for an amount equivalent to US $ 207,000 . The first work on the construction site began on May 5, 1927.

Państwowa Fabryka Związków Azotowych (State Factory for Nitrogen Compounds) was established in Mościce in 1927 . It was one of the largest investments in the re-established Republic of Poland, which set the latest trends in the Polish chemical industry. Grupa Azoty SA , based in Tarnów, continues the traditions of its predecessor to this day .

Państwowa Fabryka Związków Azotowych (State Factory for Nitrogen Compounds) in Mościce

The factory construction site was set up in the Tarnów area, approx. 4 km to the west from the center. The management of the individual departments at the construction site was largely taken over by the students of Ignacy Mościcki, who headed the chair for physical chemistry and technical electrochemistry at the Lviv University of Technology and was the rector of this university from 1925 to 1926. Most of the equipment for the manufacturing installations of Państwowa Fabryka Związków Azotowych (State Nitrogen Compound Factory) in Mościce was purchased abroad, but the rest from domestic manufacturers.

The raw material for the installation for the synthesis of ammonia , which precedes the gas cleaning plant, was metallurgical coke, from which water gas was obtained in six generators. For the needs of chemical production, a thermal power station was built that was heated using coal dust. The equipment of the steam department of the thermal power station consisted of six boiler groups. For the production of electrical energy, turbo groups were installed, which consisted of 3 condensation turbines and a counter-pressure turbine. The assembly of the machines and systems of the electric heating plant was finished on October 2nd, 1929. This date is considered the finish date of the construction of the factory. In 1928, in addition to nitrogen installations, the construction of the chlorine department together was Billiter - electrolysis started the bore no technological connection with the nitrogen part that was repaired in July 1930th

The official opening of the State Factory for Nitrogen Compounds took place in Mościce on January 18, 1930, at which the President of the Republic of Poland , Ignacy Mościcki , the representatives of the Government of the Republic of Poland with Prime Minister Kazimierz Bartel , and the Minister of Industry and Trade, Eugeniusz Kwiatkowski , took part. Państwowa Fabryka Związków Azotowych produced around 60 tons of ammonia per day in the initial phase of its existence. The nitrogen, which is indispensable for synthesis , was obtained by liquefying the air using the Linde method, but the hydrogen was obtained from water gas. Some of the ammonia produced was converted to 50 percent nitric acid. Amon nitrate, which arose from the neutralization of nitric acid with gas ammonium, was then converted into a fertilizer called Nitrofos with a nitrogen content of around 15.5%. The global production of the State Factory for Nitrogen Compounds in Mościce in 1930 was about 57,000 tons, of which about 80% was nitrogen fertilizers. In addition to the above-mentioned products, ammonium nitrate was also produced for the armaments industry in 1930, and chlorobenzene , polychlorinated naphthalenes , calcium hypochlorite and fused sodium hydroxide among the chlorine products .

The first year of operation of the State Nitrogen Compound Factory coincided with the first year of the Great Depression. In the critical situation for the factory, the previous Minister for Industry and Trade, Eugeniusz Kwiatkowski, became General Director. The minister came to Mościce in mid-February 1931. He had an important task to perform: to ensure the survival of the factory, which had only recently been repaired and was threatened with closure. The Mościce factory expanded its range of fertilizers in order to remain competitive in the market. In 1930 it was decided to modernize the installation for the production of nitric acid and ammonium sulphate. The most important investment step for the factory in the interwar period was the decision to manufacture granulated calcium nitrate (so-called Norwegian nitrate), which is currently only produced in two factories around the world. The technology was acquired in Norway, the remaining construction work, the construction and assembly of the equipment were carried out independently.

In 1934, the world's first technical installation for the production of 98.5% concentrated nitric acid using the Wendlandt method (Ho-Ko, "highly concentrated") with a capacity of 20 tons per day was manufactured in the factory in Mościce.

On August 1, 1933, PFZA Chorzów and PFZA Mościce were merged into a commercialized company owned by the State Treasury, which operated under the name Zjednoczone Fabryki Związków Azotowych w Chorzowie i Mościcach (United Nitrogen Compound Factories in Chorzów and Mościce). The Azot factory in Jaworzno also became part of ZFZA . The company ran under this name until the beginning of World War II. In 1936 a plan for the further development of Mościce was worked out, the investment expenditure in the amount of 14.8 million złoty for the modernization of the installation for the production of ammonia, nitric acid , chlorine , calcium - saltpeter and the start of the production of methanol and formalin , included.

In August 1933, work began on the supply of natural gas to Mościce by means of a pipeline from the Lemberg and Krośnieńskie Ruhr. The investment was part of the Central Industrial District ( Centralny Okręg Przemysłowy ) program. The works related to the supply of gas to Mościce were finished in 1937. Initially, the gas in the factory was used to heat the power station, which led to lower transportation and storage costs for the coal. Thereafter, the samples of the decomposition of methane in generators were carried out. After obtaining positive results, the content of hydrogen in the raw gas increased, causing the production of ammonia to increase by about 10% on average. Because of this, natural gas became a fundamental raw material, which reduced the cost of its production. At the end of the 1930s, the production of ammonia at the Mościce factory was based on the gas obtained from the generators that gasify coke and, in addition, obtained from two other generators designed to gasify coke and methane.

At the same time, the construction of a new installation was started, which should produce hydrogen on the basis of natural gas with the participation of a nickel catalyst. The investment ended shortly before the outbreak of war, but it was repaired during the occupation. During the period described, the pilot installation for the production of new nitrogen-phosphorus fertilizer ( diphosphate ) was repaired. In the years 1933–1938 the factory in Mościce produced ammonia sulfate, saltpeter , calcium nitrate, initially also nitrofos, and finally diphosphate from nitrogen fertilizers . Ammonia nitrate (also used as fertilizer), concentrated nitric acid, technical nitric acid, nitrous and condensate ammonia were made from technical nitrogen products.

Second World War

During the German occupation, the following fertilizers were produced in Mościce: calcium nitrate, ammonia sulfate, saltpetre and a small number of phosphorus fertilizers, diphosphate, phosphorite flour and, in addition, nitrogen fertilizers (technical and concentrated), ammonia nitrate , concentrated oxygen , causic acid, sodium hydroxide , hydrochloric acid , condensate, herbate oxen (Calcium chlorate). During the occupation, most of the production was limited or even stopped. The main aim of the occupation was to maintain the production that would allow the manufacture of goods that would be used during the war. During this period the production of 20.5% granulated saltpeter began, based on the installation of Nitrofos. In 1944 the Germans ordered the factory equipment to be dismantled and transported to Germany. Production was practically interrupted.

Development and expansion towards organic production in the post-war period

After the end of the occupation in June 1945, the government passed a resolution on the establishment and expansion of PFZA as part of the state program for the production of fertilizers for agriculture. The machines and systems that had been removed from Mościce were found over time. a. in Brzeg Dolny (Silesia). In 1945 the production of methanol started on a small scale. In November 1946, the semi-technical installation of formalin was given up for use and the decision to build a chlorine plant was taken. The years 1947–1949 are the period of the three-year plan. Thanks to the recovery of the stolen equipment was already in May 1947, the installation for the production of iron chrome - catalyst for the conversion of carbon monoxide released for use, and in July the installation of synthetic ammonia, and then the installation for the production of technical nitric acid and potassium nitrate ( 20.5% N). The installation for calcium nitrate was set up in 1948 and started a year later. After eight months of dismantling, the chlorine plant was given up for use. The chlorine that was acquired from salt electrolysis was the basic raw material for the production of chlorinated calcium, hydrochloric acid and chlorobenzene .

In 1949 Tarnów Nitrogen Works were already producing 20 products. The share of nitrogen fertilizers in the global production of the factory was initially at the same level as before the war (approx. 80% in mass). The remaining 20% ​​was manufacturing other chemicals. It was also a factory that produced practically non-organic products. The demand from the economy was significantly higher and rose steadily. The expansion and modernization of the nitrogen works were indispensable and required a change in the technological concept.

“Escape from coke” and the replacement of coke in the first phase with natural gas was one of the main directions in the modernization of production. Because the nitrogen works were located near the natural gas deposits, they had favorable conditions for using this raw material. The program of intensifying ammonia and fertilizer production, also known as “Tarnów I”, was implemented in stages. In the long term, the expansion of the ammonia production plant with a capacity of up to 480 tons per day, the construction of two new gas generators for the synthesis of ammonia from coke and two new generators that produce gas for ammonia synthesis on the basis of natural gas, the construction of two installations for conversion of natural gas, the modernization of the gas cleaning plant for the synthesis of ammonia from carbon oxide through the introduction of the so-called method of copper washing is planned. As part of the expansion of the production capacities of nitric acid, 5 new units of technical nitric acid were built using the pressure method by Ing.T. Hobler (eng. Hydro-Nitro-Hobler ), a second unit for the expansion of nitric acid was built and unpressurized then the installation of concentrated nitric acid up to 110 tons per day and nitrous up to 180 tons per day intensified.

The concentration of efforts in the 1950s on expanding the fertilizer train did not mean a one-sided modernization of the factory. During this period, preparations for further expansion began, which led to the enrichment of the product range and the introduction of modern, highly refined products. In the years 1952–1953, the installation for methanol synthesis was repaired on the basis of experience with the semi-technical installation that had existed in the research laboratory since 1934. The methanol produced was a raw material that was used for the production of formalin and urotropin on the new installations built and repaired during this period. In 1953 the production of the first organic product formalin was started on a technical scale with a capacity of 4500 tons per year. Both the intensification of ammonia and the formalin installation were investments that were designed and implemented independently.

Another milestone that led to a change in the company's manufacturing profile was the start of construction of the installation for caprolactam, a semi-finished product for the manufacture of fibers and polyamide fabrics. The jubilee year 1957 was called the year of major repairs. In addition to the repair of the caprolactam manufacturing plant, a new mercury salt electrolysis with a production capacity of 18,000 tons per year was handed over for use. The intensification of production and the construction of new installations caused the demand for steam and electrical energy to grow, which could not be acquired through the intensification of the existing electrical heating plant (EC I). The decision was made to build a new electric heating plant with a capacity of 50 MW with the possibility of further expansion. The new electrical heating plant (so-called EC II) was built between 1954 and 1958. The first stage in the construction of EC II consisted of the installation of three steam boilers and two discharge condensing turbines.

“Tarnów II”, acetylene chemistry. Development of caprolactam

In May 1961, the Economic Committee of the Polish Council of Ministers confirmed “the basic principles of expanding nitrogen plants in Tarnów”, that is, transforming the company into a large chemical combine. For the amount of 4.8 billion złoty at that time , the expansion of the plants and the intensification of the previous range of production on the existing installations were planned for the years 1962–1967. The program for expanding nitrogen plants was named “Tarnów II”. It comprised the construction of three installations for the production of acetylene in the process of half-burning methane including an oxygen system and a new installation for ammonia synthesis (three units each 200 tons per day), a new chlorine production plant using the mercury method with a production capacity of around 30,000 tons per year, the Construction of the acetylene-consuming chloride and vinyl polychloride production facility with a production capacity of 80,000 tons per year, a production facility for hydrogen cyanide and acrylonitrile (semi-product for the production of wool-like fibers), as well as the construction of the production facility for semiconducting silicon. The program also included the expansion of the production capacities of caprolactam, including installations that produce semi-finished products such as sulfuric acid , oleum , ammonia nitrite, hydroxylamine sulphate and process ammonia sulphate , which is a by-product in the production of caprolactam .

The raw material base for the Tarnów II installations was natural gas with a high methane content (in the amount of around 450 million m³ per year), from which acetylene was produced using the then modern method of semi-combustion using oxygen. Acetylene was processed on vinyl polychloride and acrylonitrile.

The construction of “Tarnów II” began in 1962 and was the beginning of a thirty-year period of acetylene chemistry in the nitrogen works in Tarnów.

The realization of the “Tarnów II” investment required a significant expansion of the plant infrastructure and a number of auxiliary objects. The further expansion of the EC II thermal power station was also carried out by adding the new steam boilers No. 4 and 5 and two steam turbines. In the years 1962–1964 the half pressure nitrogen acid installation was built, in which a foam system for the absorption of hydrogen oxides was used for the first time in Poland. In 1964–1968, the nitric acid production facility using the mean pressure method was gradually installed, consisting of four units with a total production capacity of 800 tons per day. In the first half of the 1960s, a new ammonia nitrate production plant was built, which was also used to manufacture granulated saltpetre using the tower method. In 1963 the first and two years later the second part of the installation for the production of saltpeter was repaired. Thanks to this, the production plant was able to produce 1,500 tons of fertilizer per day. Billiter electrolysis and mercury electrolysis were also intensified in the 1960s. Due to the construction of the production plant for vinyl polychloride, the decision was made to build a second unit for mercury electrolysis. Its realization was finished in 1967. In 1971 the construction was finished and the second unit of the semi-combustion installation was repaired. In 1972 the modernization of the first half-combustion unit was modernized. Solutions based on the pattern of the second installation were used. The rehabilitation of the first half-combustion unit after its modernization was seen as the completion of the realization of “Tarnów II”.

After the repair of the main installations of “Tarnów II” in Azoty Tarnów there were 4 basic technological features: nitrogen compounds , organic compounds of methane derivatives and chloro-caprolactam compounds. In the first half of the 1970s, the further change in the raw material base for the production of ammonia was carried out. This was decided by economic reasons and the lower efficiency of the installation of gas for ammonia synthesis than the efficiency of ammonia synthesis, modernized and built in the period of Tarnów II. In order to change the raw material basis, the decision was made to install an installation for the conversion of methane with water vapor on a nickel catalyst with a production capacity of 500 tons per day, converted to ammonia. The unit was given the further decomposition number 5 and was colloquially referred to as "change in base". The new installation was repaired in September 1973. Due to their repairs, ammonia was no longer produced from expensive coke based on water gas. The outdated generators, which were one of the most important installations in the pre-war nitrogen works, were banned from use.

The Tarnów II period also meant successes for the Tarnów chemists in optimizing caprolactam technologies. After the installation was commissioned in 1957, its projected production capacity of 4,000,000 tons was reached and then even exceeded. Four years later, the capacity of the installation increased up to 16,200 tons per year. The further work on the modernization and intensification of caprolactam, which u. a. The construction of the purification of caprolactam through crystallization, construction of the "Luwa" installation based on Swiss solutions, construction of the installation for the production of cyclohexanone based on phenol from the cumene hydroperoxide process led to the production capacity of 55,000 tonnes each being reached in 1975 Day. The biggest breakthrough in the production of caprolactam was the start-up in 1973 on an industrial scale, based on the processing of the Institute of the Chemical Industry in Warsaw, a proprietary, new, original method for producing cyclohexanone from benzene . The process called “Cyclopol” became a hit in the field of export of Polish technical idea, not only for the Polish chemical industry, but also for the whole industry.

At the beginning of the 1970s, the decision was made to expand the existing semi-technical installation for processing vinyl polychloride. The production of drainage and tele-technical pipes made of PVC was started. Tarnów became a potentate in terms of both quantity and quality of drainage pipes. In August 1975, the production of polytrioxane with the trade name Tarnoform was started on the test and pilot installation . This was an installation with a small manufacturing capacity (about 1,000 tons of powder per year), but in terms of the range of technological difficulties and the merits of the polymer produced, it qualified as a group of serious technological achievements. The decision to build a technical production facility from Polytrihexan was only made in 1985. Another novelty in the nitrogen plant in Azoty was the repair of the production of poly-four-fluoro-ethylene (PTFE) with the trade name Tarflen. The production of this unique material was already mastered in 1970 on a polytechnical scale. The commissioning of the installation with a production capacity of 500 tons per year, the project of which was processed by the company's own project office, began in 1978. This success aroused the interest of foreign contractors and made this technology, in addition to the caprolactam technology, the subject of the export of the technical idea has been. In the factories, the role of exporting the technical idea was appreciated not only as a source of additional income, but also as a motivation for developing and increasing the qualifications of professional personnel.

In the 1980s, access to investment funds was restricted, as a result of which only modernization measures were carried out in the nitrogen plants. At the end of the decade, construction began on the new technical nitric acid installation. Without replacing the old acid units with a new installation that met ecological standards, the production of nitrogen fertilizers in Tarnów would have to be stopped. The installation was put into operation in April 1992.

The factory in Tarnów after the transformation of the state structure in 1989

On February 21, 1991, the act of converting the nitrogen works in Tarnów from a state-owned company into a one-person joint stock company with 100% of the state treasury was signed. The decline of the so-called acetylene chemistry and the significant increase in the price of natural gas meant that in relation to most of the installations put into operation in the Tarnów II period from the beginning of the 1990s, the “initial strategy” was gradually introduced. As the first to not withstand the conditions of the established market economy, the installation of acrylonitrile was ruled out in 1990; thereafter, due to the unprofitable production, the processing of silicon was excluded. At the turn of the 1990s, problems with the sale of acetone cyanohydrin also began. New economic principles also caused problems with the sale of drainage and tele-technical pipes in the early 1990s. In the fall of 1990, work began on building the modern ammonia sulphate installation. Thanks to the new installation, which was repaired in 1992, not only the quality but also the effectiveness of the product improved. It also limited the amount of sulphate that was discharged into the drain. In the same year, the processing of PVC window profiles was put into operation, and in the next few years PVC windows. In 1993, the production of liquid carbon dioxide on the basis of the CO 2 released into the atmosphere from the installation of the 5th methane decomposition plant was put into operation and used the existing, free production resources for this purpose.

In the 80s and 90s, the caprolactam capabilities were further increased through the intensification of the production of cyclohexanone from benzene and the modernization of the ammonia nitrite and hydroxyloamine sulfate installation. The introduction of a two-stage Beckmann regrouping in September 1993 significantly improved the quality of the product. In autumn 1994, the first line of the new Tarnoform processing plant with a production capacity of up to 10,000 tons per year went into operation in two trains. It was based on the installation for the production of formalin, which was repaired in 1993. The biggest event of 1996 was the handover of the installation for the polymerization of caprolactam to produce polyamide PA-6 (Tarnamid) with the production capacity of 22,700 tons per year. In 1997 the second line of the processing plant from Tarnoform was handed over to use, which made it possible to increase the production of this marketable material by 5,000 tons, up to 10,000 tons per year.

In 1996 the construction of the concentrated nitric acid installation began. The installation was repaired at the end of 1997, almost 15 months from the start of construction. The repair of a new installation of concentrated nitric acid with the production capacity of 100 tons per day made it possible to exclude the worn out existing installation and resulted in the limitation of the emission of nitrogen oxides and the significant limitation of the specific energy consumption in the production of concentrated nitric acid. In the 1990s, the production of ammonia in the factories became less and less effective and everyone was convinced of the need to modernize the ammonia synthesis installation, which reached the war time, and not only for purely economic but also for ecological reasons. The project work, including the construction of a new ammonia installation based on the equipment that came from the ammonia installation in Hungary, began in 1997. The handover of the installation in 2000 made it possible to include the ammonia synthesis units that had been operating since 1929.

Throughout the 1990s, with the consideration of lowering costs and increasing competitiveness, as well as reducing the harmful impact on the environment, the implementation of projects in the field of modernization of technological solutions was carried out. The effects in the field of environmental protection were achieved thanks to the modernization of existing installations equipped with additional protection nodes, as well as thanks to the introduction of new installations based on modern technologies. One of the greatest and most visible environmentally conscious successes is the 10-fold restriction of the emission into the atmosphere of nitrogen dioxide, dusts, as well as the restriction of the discharge of nitrogen loads and other contaminants into the sewers. A confirmation of the effective environmentally conscious measures of the nitrogen works in Tarnów was the removal of the company from the list of companies that pollute the most heavily in the country, the so-called "Lista 80" in April 2001. The 1990s were based on the expansion of the group wastewater treatment plant.

In the 1990s, the production of PVC from our own vinyl chloride, which is based on the valuable raw material acetylene, which was created in the process of half-burning methane, was not profitable - with the exception of the special periods. From the second half of the 1990s, the price of natural gas rose systematically, which resulted in further increases in the cost of PVC production. The existing economic conditions created the need for further restrictions on acetylene production, and ultimately on its own vinyl chloride. In 1998 the semi-combustion installation was excluded from use, but in 2001 the second one. In the second half of 2001, due to the high purchase costs of vinyl chloride and its processing, PVC production was discontinued and in April 2002 the decision was made to liquidate the PVC processing facility. Acetone cyanohydrin began to decline at the beginning of the 21st century. In April 2002 the decision was made to exclude the exploitation from this installation.

After the forced restructuring of production in the processing plants, which took place in the "Tarnów II" period, the processing of caprolactam with ammonia sulphate, processing of fertilizers based on new ammonia synthesis and a number of auxiliary and infrastructure objects were expanded and modernized. The year 2005 included the realization of two important investments. The first was to step up the PA-6 processing facility to a production capacity of 45,000 tons per year. The second investment was the construction of the installation of the mechanical granulation of fertilizers with the production capacity of about 400,000 tons per year. In the same year there was another breakthrough in the technology of producing cyclohexanone from benzene, which was associated with the introduction of a so-called two-step oxidation process, which gave the beginning of the technology called Cyclopol-bis. The production capacity of caprolactam in general reached the level of 95,000 tons per year due to the intensification and modernization carried out in the period from 1995 to 2005.

In June 2008, Tarnów nitrogen works made its debut on the Warsaw Stock Exchange . At the end of 2009, a modern installation for the mechanical granulation of fertilizers with a production capacity of 1,200 tons per day was put into operation. The realization of the task gave the possibility of introducing a new product on the market, ammonia nitrate sulphate (Saletrosan), and strengthening the market position of the plants in the sector of nitrate fertilizers. The second emission target achieved was to increase the production capacity of polyamides. A radical change in company strategy made it possible to achieve this goal.

At the beginning of 2010, the Tarnów nitrogen works became the owner of 100% of the shares in a German manufacturer of polyamides, ATT Polymers in Guben. The acquisition turned out to be a significantly cheaper option than building a new processing facility in Tarnów. The effect of the takeover was a significant promotion of the Azoty Tarnów capital group among the European manufacturers of polyamides. In the same year, the realization of one of the other emission targets began: the construction of the hydrogen installation in Tarnów with a production capacity of 8,000 m³ / h, which, with the modernization of the caprolactam processing, will reach a production capacity of 101,300 tons per year. The investment made it possible to increase the consumption of natural gas from local sources and, as a consequence, to reduce manufacturing costs.

Large-scale chemical synthesis company consolidation

Since 2010 Azoty Tarnów has been implementing the process of consolidation of the largest chemical companies in Poland. The first significant event was the acquisition by the company of 100% shares in Unylon Polymers GmbH in Guben / Germany, a manufacturer of polyamides . The company became part of the Azoty Tarnów capital group and changed its name to ATT Polymers.

Another step was the beginning of the consolidation of the Polish chemical industry, which was subject to the merger of the largest Polish companies from this sector. The first stage of the whole company was the connection of the nitrogen plants in Tarnów with the nitrogen plants in Kędzierzyn-Koźle ( ZAK SA ). The process consisted in Azoty Tarnów's purchase of a package of 52.6% of the shares in B ZAK SA as part of the issue carried out by the State Treasury. The whole transaction involved the amount of 150 million zloty .

In 2011 the decision was made to link the Tarnów nitrogen works with the Police chemical works (near Szczecin), 60% of which were owned by the state treasury. The boards of both companies were sympathetic to the consolidation. The nitrogen works from Tarnów began after the agreement of Urząd Ochrony Konkurencji i Konsumentów (German: Office for Competition and Consumer Protection) and due to no objection from the Federal Cartel Office, to collect funds that were essential for the implementation of the transaction. We managed to collect the funds earmarked for the purchase of the control package for the shares of the Police Chemical Works, including a. thanks to the issuance of 25 million series C shares approved by the Financial Supervision Commission. The money acquired in this way enabled not only to take control of Police, but also to buy another 40% of the shares in the Kędzierzyn-Koźle plants from the state treasury.

In 2012 the Tarnów nitrogen works were the target of a hostile takeover by the Russian Acron . On May 16, the Russians wanted to take control of the Polish chemical company through the intermediary of the dependent company Norica Holding S.à rl and published an offer to buy shares in the nitrogen works in Tarnów-Mościce at a price of 36 złoty each. Acron only managed to acquire 12% of the shares. The steps taken by the company's board of directors and the Treasury Department (including through the Parliament's resolution on the Law on Control of Certain Investments) allowed the company to be protected from hostile takeover.

On July 13, 2012 there was an invitation to sell 6,116,800 shares in Puławy nitrogen works at a price of 110 złoty each. As a result of the request, the works in Tarnów managed to acquire 10.3% of the shares in the nitrogen works in Puławy. The call was the first stage in the consolidation of the two largest chemical companies in Poland. The concept of consolidating the plants in Puławy with the nitrogen plants in Tarnów was supported by the State Treasury and the workers' unions. On November 15, 2012, the management of the nitrogen plants in Tarnów and Puławy signed a contract that describes the principles of cooperation and negotiation.

After that, shares of the nitrogen works in Tarnów were issued, which were only available to shareholders of the company from Puławy. They exchanged the shares of the plants in Puławy for the shares of the company in Tarnów at a ratio of 1: 2. For the full realization of this stage, the approval of the European Commission for the merger of the two companies was necessary., Which was granted on January 13, 2013 The nitrogen works in Tarnów finally acquired 95% of the shares in the nitrogen works in Puławy as a result of the purchase. The connection of the plants in Tarnów, Puławy , Police and Kędzierzyn-Koźle made it possible to create one of the fertilizer companies in Europe, which operates under the name Grupa Azoty and represents about 75-80% of the country's fertilizer production.

On November 21, 2013 the company bought 85% of the shares of the only producer of sulfur by smelting method in Poland from the state treasury - the sulfur mine and chemical sulfur works “Siarkopol” SA in Grzybów. The value of the transaction was about 400 million zloty.

Another important event in the company's history was the acquisition by Grupa Azoty, the chemical plant “Police” SA, of the phosphorite mine in Senegal . The deal, valued at $ 28.5 million, allowed the Police Works to acquire 55% of AIG's shares. Thanks to this investment, the independent company guaranteed Grupa Azoty its own raw material source, which is indispensable for the production of phosphorus and multi-component fertilizers.

General Directors (CEO since 1994)

  • 1927–1929 - Tadeusz Zwisłocki (General Director PFZA)
  • 1929–1933 - Romuald Wowkonowicz (General Director PFZA)
  • 1930–1933 - Eugeniusz Kwiatkowski (General Director PFZA i ZFZA)
  • 1936–1939 - Czesław Benedek (General Director ZFZA)
  • 1945–1946 - Stanisław Żuczkiewicz
  • 1946 - Hugo Trzebicki
  • 1946–1948 - Józef Szymański
  • 1948–1951 - Stanisław Anioł
  • 1951–1952 - Stanisław Lau
  • 1952 - Mieczysław Gołąb
  • 1953–1958 - Henryk Gładecki
  • 1958–1978 - Stanisław Opałko
  • 1978–1988 - Jerzy Pyzikowski
  • 1988-1994 - Andrzej Kasznia
  • 1994–1999 - Stanisław Maciejczyk
  • 1999-2001 - Antoni Barwacz
  • 2001–2006 - Ryszard Ścigała
  • 2006 - Jarosław Żołędowski
  • 2006-2008 - Jarosław Wita
  • 2008-2013 - Jerzy Marciniak
  • 2013–2016 - Paweł Jarczewski
  • 2016 - Mariusz Bober

Individual evidence

  1. ↑ grupaazoty.com: Kalendarium historyczne. Retrieved July 6, 2016 (Polish).
  2. ↑ moscice.pl: Ignacy Moscicki - Budowniczy Mościc. (No longer available online.) Archived from the original on July 28, 2016 ; Retrieved July 6, 2016 (Polish). Info: The archive link was inserted automatically and has not yet been checked. Please check the original and archive link according to the instructions and then remove this notice. @1@ 2Template: Webachiv / IABot / www.moscice.pl
  3. ↑ it.tarnow.pl: Mościce (dzielnica ogród). Retrieved July 6, 2016 (Polish).
  4. ↑ biznes.pl: 85. urodziny jednego z najstarszych zakładów w Polsce. Retrieved July 6, 2016 (Polish).
  5. ↑ wyborcza.pl: Prof. Morawski: Zakłady w Tarnowie stały się wzorem dla innych inwestycji w II RP. Retrieved July 6, 2016 (Polish).
  6. ↑ muzeumchemii.pl: Przemysł chemiczny II Rzeczypospolitej. Retrieved July 6, 2016 (Polish).
  7. ↑ nowahistoria.interia.pl: Tarnowskie "Azoty". Perła w koronie Centralnego Okręgu Przemysłu. Retrieved July 6, 2016 (Polish).
  8. ↑ kuriergalicyjski.com: Romuald Wowkonowicz. Retrieved July 6, 2016 (Polish).
  9. ↑ pulshistorii.pb.pl: Azot - przedwojenny hit eksportowy. Retrieved July 6, 2016 (Polish).
  10. ↑ grupaazoty.com: O Spółce. Retrieved July 6, 2016 (Polish).
  11. ↑ kierunkechemia.pl: 85 lat tarnowskich zakładów. Retrieved July 6, 2016 (Polish).
  12. ↑ iich.gliwice.pl: Prof. dr inż. Tadeusz Hobler (1899-1975). Retrieved July 6, 2016 (Polish).
  13. ↑ dziennikpolski24.pl: Azoty, czyli całe życie Szczypińskich. Retrieved July 6, 2016 (Polish).
  14. ↑ a b grupaazoty.com: Lata 60 ', 70' i 80 '. Retrieved July 6, 2016 (Polish).
  15. ↑ muzeumchemii.pl: Tarnów II - nowe inwestycje w tarnowskich Azotach. Retrieved July 6, 2016 (Polish).
  16. ↑ S. Rygiel, Zarys historii Zakładu Kaprolaktamu , in: ArchZAT , 1984, s. 6th
  17. ↑ Historia Zakładów w zapisie kronikarskim , in: TA , s. 4th
  18. ↑ grupaazoty.com: Lata 90 '- 2004. Accessed July 6, 2016 (Polish).
  19. ↑ Sprawozdanie opisowe spółki za rok 1993 , in: ArchZAT , 1993, p. 29
  20. ↑ Sprawozdanie opisowe spółki za rok 1997 , in: ArchZAT , 1997, p. 21st
  21. ↑ krakow.naszemiasto.pl: Najwięksi truciciele coraz mniej szkodzą. Retrieved July 6, 2016 (Polish).
  22. ↑ ichp.pl: Badania nad opracowaniem syntezy Surowców do otrzymywania włókien polimerowych. Retrieved July 6, 2016 (Polish).
  23. ↑ wyborcza.pl: Fatalny debiut tarnowskich Azotów na GPW. Co z prywatyzacją? Retrieved July 6, 2016 (Polish).
  24. ↑ kierunekchemia.pl: Tarnów: Instalacja mechanicznej granulacji nawozów. Retrieved July 6, 2016 (Polish).
  25. ↑ plastech.pl: Azoty Tarnów przejęły niemieckiego producenta poliamidu. Retrieved July 6, 2016 (Polish).
  26. ↑ chemiaibiznes.com.pl: Azoty Tarnów właścicielem spółki w Guben. Retrieved July 6, 2016 (Polish).
  27. ↑ chemia.wnp.pl: Pięć lat temu rozpoczęła się rewolucja w polskiej chemii. Retrieved July 6, 2016 (Polish).
  28. ↑ money.pl: ZA Tarnów obejmą udziały w ZAK za 150 mln zł. Retrieved July 6, 2016 (Polish).
  29. ↑ strefabiznesu.gp24.pl: ZCh Police i Azoty Tarnów: Jednym głosem o połączeniu. Retrieved July 6, 2016 (Polish).
  30. ↑ chemia.wnp.pl: Azoty Tarnów największym odbiorcą gazu w Polsce. Retrieved July 6, 2016 (Polish).
  31. ↑ strefabieznesu.gp24.pl: ZCh Police i Azoty Tarnów: Jednym głosem o połączeniu. Retrieved July 6, 2016 (Polish).
  32. ↑ krakow.tvp.pl: AZOTY TARNÓW MAJĄ ZGODĘ NA PRZEJĘCIE POLIC. Retrieved July 6, 2016 (Polish).
  33. ↑ naszepolice.pl: UOKiK dał zgodę, Federal Cartel Office też. (No longer available online.) Archived from the original on July 28, 2016 ; Retrieved July 6, 2016 (Polish). Info: The archive link was inserted automatically and has not yet been checked. Please check the original and archive link according to the instructions and then remove this notice. @1@ 2Template: Webachiv / IABot / www.naszepolice.pl
  34. ↑ sii.org.pl: Rozpoczęła się Oferta Publiczna Zakładów Azotowych w Tarnowie-Mościcach SA Retrieved July 6, 2016 (Polish).
  35. ↑ polskieradio.pl: Azoty Tarnów emitują akcje, aby przejąć Police. Retrieved July 6, 2016 (Polish).
  36. ↑ tygodni7dni.pl: Azoty Tarnów dokupią 40 percent akcji ZAK. (No longer available online.) Archived from the original on August 7, 2013 ; Retrieved July 6, 2016 (Polish). Info: The archive link was inserted automatically and has not yet been checked. Please check the original and archive link according to the instructions and then remove this notice. @1@ 2Template: Webachiv / IABot / www.tygodnik7dni.pl
  37. ↑ strefabiznesu.nto.pl: Tarnów kupił kolejne akcje ZAK. Retrieved July 6, 2016 (Polish).
  38. ↑ polskieradio.pl: Azoty w kontrataku: Rosja planuje wrogie przejęcie. Retrieved July 6, 2016 (Polish).
  39. ↑ biznes.onet.pl: Tusk: promocja inwestycji rosyjskiej w Azoty - wbrew naszym interesom. Retrieved July 6, 2016 (Polish).
  40. ↑ wyborcza.biz: Ratunku, Ruscy! (No longer available online.) Archived from the original on May 22, 2016 ; Retrieved July 6, 2016 (Polish). Info: The archive link was inserted automatically and has not yet been checked. Please check the original and archive link according to the instructions and then remove this notice. @1@ 2Template: Webachiv / IABot / wyborcza.biz
  41. ↑ pb.pl: Tusk: Sprzedaż Azotów Tarnów Acronowi nie w interesie Polski. Retrieved July 6, 2016 (Polish).
  42. ↑ wyborcza.biz: Azoty Tarnów chcą się rozwijać bez mariażu z rosyjskim Acronem. Retrieved July 6, 2016 (Polish).
  43. ↑ wyborcza.biz: Zarząd Azotów Tarnów negatywnie o wezwaniu grupy Acron. Retrieved July 6, 2016 (Polish).
  44. ↑ wnp.pl: Grupa Acron ogłosiła wezwanie na akcje Azotów Tarnów. Chce mieć 66%. Retrieved July 6, 2016 (Polish).
  45. ↑ wnp.pl: Fiasco wezwania Acronu na Azoty Tarnów. Rosyjski koncern zostanie mniejszościowym akcjonariuszem. Retrieved July 6, 2016 (Polish).
  46. ↑ a b polityka.pl: Zakłady Azotowe obronione przed Rosjanami. Retrieved July 6, 2016 (Polish).
  47. ↑ msp.gov.pl: Grupa Azoty na liście podmiotów strategicznych (VIDEO). Retrieved July 6, 2016 (Polish).
  48. ↑ wyborcza.biz: Polska chemia wybroniona przed Acronem. Będzie emisja akcji. Retrieved July 6, 2016 (Polish).
  49. ↑ wpolityce.pl: Co jeszcze przejmie Grupa Azoty, żeby zablokować Rosjan? “Trzeba włączać kolejne wielkie spółki państwowe, żeby obniżać udział Rosjan w jej kapitale akcyjnym”. Retrieved July 6, 2016 (Polish).
  50. ↑ biznes.onet.pl: Baniak: konsolidacja chemii według najbezpieczniejszego wariantu. Retrieved July 6, 2016 (Polish).
  51. ↑ dziennik.pl: Żydowski filantrop i rosyjski oligarcha potknął się na tarnowskich azotach. Retrieved July 6, 2016 (Polish).
  52. ↑ newsweek.pl: Wrogie przejęcie nieudane? Acron kupił “tylko” 12 percent. Tarnowa. Retrieved July 6, 2016 (Polish).
  53. ↑ gs24.pl: Zakłady Azotowe Tarnów uniknęły wrogiego przejęcia. Retrieved July 6, 2016 (Polish).
  54. ↑ parkiet.com: Nieudane wezwanie na akcje Puław. Retrieved July 6, 2016 (Polish).
  55. ↑ stockwatch.pl: Azoty Tarnów i Puławy o krok od stworzenia chemicznego imperium. Retrieved July 6, 2016 (Polish).
  56. ↑ wprost.pl: Chemiczna megafuzja. Retrieved July 6, 2016 (Polish).
  57. ↑ wnp.pl: Związkowcy za konsolidacją Azotów Tarnów i Puławy. Retrieved July 6, 2016 (Polish).
  58. ↑ nettg.pl: MSP: specjalizacja produktowa pomysłem na fuzję zakładów azotowych. Retrieved July 6, 2016 (Polish).
  59. ↑ kierunekchemia.pl: Cztery wezwania i sukces. Retrieved July 6, 2016 (Polish).
  60. ↑ onet.pl: ZA Tarnów i ZA Puławy podpisały umowę o konsolidacji. Retrieved July 6, 2016 (Polish).
  61. ↑ a b wyborcza.biz: Historyczna umowa podpisana. Powstaje “wielka synteza chemiczna”. Retrieved July 6, 2016 (Polish).
  62. ↑ forbes.pl: ZA Tarnów przejmują ZA Puławy. Retrieved July 6, 2016 (Polish).
  63. ↑ kurierlubelski.pl: Komisja Europejska zgodziła się na przejęcie Azotów Puławy przez ZA Tarnów. Retrieved July 6, 2016 (Polish).
  64. ↑ wyborcza.biz: Jest zgoda Komisji Europejskiej. Wielka polska chemia ma Zielone światło. Retrieved July 6, 2016 (Polish).
  65. ↑ wnp.pl: Azoty Tarnów i ZA Puławy prawie skonsolidowane. Retrieved July 6, 2016 (Polish).
  66. ↑ wnp.pl: Fuzja na nawozie - rynek po połączeniu Tarnowa i Puław. Retrieved July 6, 2016 (Polish).
  67. ↑ wnp.pl: Grupa Azoty przejęła Siarkopol. Retrieved July 6, 2016 (Polish).
  68. ↑ radioszczecin.pl: Fosforyty z Senegalu trafią do Polic. Retrieved July 6, 2016 (Polish).
  69. ↑ dziennik.pl: Polski koncern podbija Afrykę. Takiej transakcji nie było od lat.Retrieved July 6, 2016 (Polish).
  70. ↑ wyborcza.biz: Polskie firmy na potęgę wiercą i kopią na świecie. Retrieved July 6, 2016 (Polish).
  71. ↑ radioszczecin.pl: ZCh Police kupiły kopalnię w Afryce. Retrieved July 6, 2016 (Polish).
  72. ↑ pb.pl: Polskie firmy podbijają Afrykę. (No longer available online.) Archived from the original on June 24, 2016 ; Retrieved July 6, 2016 (Polish). Info: The archive link was inserted automatically and has not yet been checked. Please check the original and archive link according to the instructions and then remove this notice. @1@ 2Template: Webachiv / IABot / www.pb.pl
  73. ↑ szczecin.wyborcza.pl: ZCh Police kupiły kopalnię w Senegalu. Będą wydobywać fosforyty. (No longer available online.) Archived from the original on July 28, 2016 ; Retrieved July 6, 2016 (Polish). Info: The archive link was inserted automatically and has not yet been checked. Please check the original and archive link according to the instructions and then remove this notice. @1@ 2Template: Webachiv / IABot / szczecin.wyborcza.pl
  74. ↑ strefabiznesu.gs24.pl: Zakłady Chemiczne kupiły kopalnie w Senegalu. Retrieved July 6, 2016 (Polish).
  75. ↑ wnp.pl: ZCh Police kupią producenta fosforytów z Senegalu. Retrieved July 6, 2016 (Polish).