OMV Petrom becomes main partner of the Romanian Rowing Federation (RRF)

• "Energy for performance": EUR 1 mn for the future of Romanian rowing

OMV Petrom and RRF launched today, during a press conference held at the "Elisabeta Lipă" National Sports Complex in Snagov, the "Energy for Performance" project. The project, worth EUR 1 mn, supports the training of the future generation of Romanian rowing champions at European, World and Olympic levels. Thus, OMV Petrom, through its Petrom retail brand, becomes main partner of the Romanian Rowing Federation.

The "Energy for performance" project will run for five years and is intended to support the selection activity at the training bases of Romanian rowing in the country, such as those in Iași, Orșova and Fălticeni. The funds will support the purchase of boats and equipment that the future champions of Romania will need, but also the improvement of training conditions.

Radu Căprău, member of the OMV Petrom Executive Board, Elisabeta Lipă, President of the National Sports Agency and the athletes from the RRF Olympic team participated in the project launch event.

"Romanian rowing has demonstrated over time that it has exceptional athletes, and, despite this, the funding received from the state has always been insufficient. Existing funds usually go to the senior teams and too little to the clubs from which they come, in order to stimulate the selection of new athletes. Through the "Energy for Performance" project we want to encourage and finance the expansion of the selection activity, without which it is impossible to create a new generation of champions. New boats and equipment will also be purchased and all the conditions that the new athletes will need to develop beautifully, increase in value and perform at the highest level will be improved. No one is born a champion, rather a lot of preparation work is needed for the results to be the best. Our long-term plan is to have a new generation of extraordinary and well-prepared athletes for the Olympic Games in Los Angeles in 2028. Thank you, Petrom, for the trust placed in Romanian rowing and especially for supporting the sport exactly where it is needed - at the base. It is a brave project that we are starting together today, and in 5 years I am convinced that we will have Olympic medals that we can say are the fruit of this beautiful partnership - Energy for Performance," said Elisabeta Lipă, President of the National Sports Agency.

"We invest in Romania and in Romanians. For almost 20 years, we have been supporting national causes and community development projects – more than EUR 160 mn have financed health, environment and education projects. We are happy to announce today our support for the discovery and development of young talents in a sport that, every year, makes us proud to be Romanians. Romanian rowing is equal with performance, that's why we are honoured to announce Petrom's partnership with the Romanian Rowing Federation", said Radu Căprău, OMV Petrom Executive Board Member, responsible for Refining and Marketing.

Cristian Maliș, emeritus and head coach of the Orșova Olympic Center, was also present at the press conference, considered one of the main coaches in the selection and training of athletes at the beginning of the journey.

“It is essential that we have adequate funding for the selection process in performance rowing. Only if we have support, we can identify and properly train the most talented young athletes. We give them all our support, but we need additional resources to enable them to realize their potential and achieve outstanding international performance. We appreciate Petrom's support and thank you for this investment in the future of Romanian rowing," said Cristian Maliș.

Also, at the Snagov conference, Simona Radiș, Olympic champion and multiple European and World champion, said: "Through our performances, we want to be models for the future generation of rowers. Thank you, Petrom, for giving us the much-needed support for this sport to have not only a glorious present, but also a bright future! With your help, I am confident that the next generation of rowers will not only match us but be even better than us. I believe that today is the start of a beautiful future for Romanian rowing."

About OMV Petrom 

OMV Petrom is the largest integrated energy producer in Southeastern Europe, with an annual Group hydrocarbon production of approximately 41 million boe in 2023. The Group has a refining capacity of 4.5 million tons annually and operates an 860 MW high-efficiency gas-fired power plant. The Group is present on the oil products retail market in Romania and neighbouring countries through approximately 780 filling stations under two brands – OMV and Petrom.

OMV Petrom is a company in which, as of end-2023, Romanian shareholders hold over 43% of the shares (of which the Romanian state, through the Ministry of Energy, holds 20.7%, and 22.5% are owned by pension funds in Romania, to which are added almost 500,000 individual investors and other Romanian entities). OMV Aktiengesellschaft, one of the largest listed industrial companies in Austria, holds a 51.2% stake in OMV Petrom, and the remaining 5.6% are held by other foreign investors. Of the total shares of OMV Petrom, 28.1% represents the free float on the Bucharest Stock Exchange.

OMV Petrom is one of the largest contributors to the state budget, with approximately 42 billion euro in taxes and dividends paid between 2005 and 2023. During the same period, the company invested approximately 18 billion euro.

Since 2007, OMV Petrom has included corporate responsibility principles into its business strategy. Between 2007 and 2023, the company has allocated around 160 million euro to develop communities in Romania, focusing on environmental protection, education, health, and local development.

On July 29th, 2020, OMV Petrom announced its support for the recommendations issued by the Task Force on Climate-related Financial Disclosures (TCFD) regarding risks and opportunities on climate change. OMV Petrom annually reports on the progress made in implementing these recommendations.

About the Romanian Rowing Federation

Founded in 1925, the Romanian Rowing Federation brought Romania, through the performances of its athletes, 40 Olympic medals, of which 20 gold, 12 silver and 8 bronze medals.

Starting in 2017, the Romanian Rowing Federation leads the top performance of sports federations in our country, with a track record of hundreds of medals obtained at the World and European championships. In 2023 alone, Romanian athletes won 39 medals at international championships: 24 gold medals, 9 silver medals and 6 bronze medals, and Romania qualified for the Paris 2024 Olympic Games with 11 crews, an absolute first.

At the Olympic Games in Tokyo 2020, Simona Radiș and Ancuța Bodnar became Olympic champions, double European champions in 2022, both in women's double rowing (W2x) and in women's 8+1 (W8+), but also World champions in 2022 in women's double rowing (W2x).

In 2022, the athletes were named "Women's Crew of the Year" at the World Rowing Awards 2022. The award was given by World Rowing, the International Rowing Federation. It is the first time in the 20-year history of the World Rowing Awards that such a trophy is won by rowers from Romania.