The merger comes as PKN Orlen has strengthened its position in the Czech Republic following last week's move to up the company's stake in Czechia's Unipetrol to 94%. The market capitalisation of PKN Orlen is around PLN40bn (€9.6bn), while Lotos is worth some PLN10bn. PKN Orlen's shares gained over 5% at closing on the Warsaw Stock Exchange on the day of the merger announcement. Lotos' stock grew 7.3%. The Polish state currently controls PKN Orlen via a 27.5% stake while most of the remaining shares are held via the free float. The state's stake in Lotos, which is the minimum target for PKN Orlen, is 53.2%. Poland dismissed PKN Orlen CEO Wojciech Jasinski on February 5, replacing him with Daniel Obajtek, who has little managerial experience in running top-flight companies and is seen a political appointment.