May 29, 2026 [Reuters]- Poland’s largest energy group Orlen reported a 22.8% rise in first-quarter adjusted core profit on Thursday, beating market expectations as ​the outbreak of the Iran war drove a surge in refining margins.

As ‌of 0725 GMT, shares of the company were up 1.6%, outperforming Poland’s blue-chip WIG20 index, which fell 0.1%, as well as regional peers Unimot and MOL, which fell 0.5% ​and rose 0.2% respectively.

“The figures appear to confirm the resilience and ​diversification benefits of Orlen’s integrated business model amid elevated volatility ⁠on global energy markets,” Erste analyst Cezary Bernatek said in a note.

Its ​LIFO-based earnings before interest, taxes, depreciation and amortisation, a measure excluding impairment losses ​and inventory valuation changes, reached 14.07 billion zlotys ($3.85 billion) in the quarter, topping a 13.2 billion zloty consensus compiled by Orlen.

The company’s model refining margin, which measures the profit ​made from converting crude oil into refined products, rose to $17.0 per barrel ​in the quarter from $8.9 a year earlier, it said.

Earnings were also supported by cold weather ‌that ⁠boosted demand for electricity and natural gas in January and February.

The higher volumes lifted Orlen’s energy segment, helping to offset a negative impact from lower domestic gas and electricity distribution tariffs.

The company’s unadjusted earnings were hit by non-cash ​impairment charges of 1.11 ​billion zlotys, ⁠tied largely to its downstream segment including the revised “New Chemistry” petrochemical project, which Orlen had flagged earlier in May.

In April, Orlen’s ​supervisory board approved an updated 35.8 billion zloty budget for ​the investment, ⁠which is now expected to reach full start-up in 2030.

Orlen also confirmed it plans to close the acquisition of the remaining shares in the delayed Grupa ⁠Azoty ​Polyolefins project in the third quarter, a deal requiring ​1.35 billion zlotys in financing to complete the unit’s restructuring.