"The petrochemical segment is going through a fundamental transformation. Unfortunately, in recent years, it has been accompanied by a long-term slowdown on the European market with no prospect for recovery in the mid-term. And since the production capacities of Spolana are rather smaller on a European scale, part of our current production is no longer competitive and sustainable," said Piotr Kearney, authorised executive at Spolana, adding: "After careful consideration, we have decided to gradually exit the current segments of our business and prepare Spolana for new types of business, for example, in the area of industry decarbonisation."

Spolana’s financial results are substantially affected by a drop in the demand for petrochemical products, especially caprolactam, the macroeconomic slowdown and subsequent stagnation, higher production costs in Europe, and hence lower competitiveness compared to producers from the US and the Middle East. The situation is also complicated because the company's facilities are among the smaller ones in terms of production capacity in Europe.

“All of this has been negatively reflected in our company’s results, which have long been in the red even though Spolana has recently focused on products with a higher added value and margin and used the strong financial background of the parent ORLEN Unipetrol Group. However, despite all the measures adopted so far, we must react and take action, including lowering costs, also in the personnel area," added Piotr Kearney.

During the first half of 2025, the production of PVC and caprolactam will be closed, and the existing organisational structure will be slimmed down and streamlined. This measure will affect approximately 500 jobs, which will be cancelled. All employees affected by the organisational changes will be offered an above-standard package, including their employment termination by agreement with severance pay beyond the statutory duties and conditions set out in the collective bargaining agreement. The above-standard severance pay will reflect the duration of each individual employee’s employment. After the completion of the restructuring project, approximately 150 employees will remain in Spolana until new business projects in industrial decarbonisation are launched.

Spolana will provide the employees affected by redundancies with as much assistance as possible. The HR Division will help outgoing employees create CVs, give them personnel counselling and an option to consult a psychologist and use the expanded cooperation with the Labour Office of the Czech Republic when seeking new job opportunities. Part of the employees will be offered the possibility of retraining and employment in the new production facilities.

Spolana will preserve and continue to modernise the sulphuric acid production facility that started in 2023. Spolana will also continue to implement the Neratovice flood protection project in cooperation with the town of Neratovice to protect the site. The operation of the company's wastewater treatment plant will also be maintained to continue treating wastewater coming from the site and the surrounding villages.​