Refinery Sector: Fanto Refinery.

In 1896, a large refinery was built in Ustrzyki Dolne, which was taken over by Fanto S.A. in 1902. After World War I, further expansion and modernization of the plant began.

It employed 450 workers. Between 1929 and 1935, the owners embarked on further expansion and modernization of the plant. Additional distilleries, a paraffin plant, a laboratory, mechanical workshops with a forge, and a new boiler house were built. Large tanks were built near the railway line to store crude oil.

The processing capacity of the Ustrzyki Dolne refinery was very high. By 1928, it was processing 54,000 tons of crude oil per year, which accounted for 4% of Poland’s total crude oil production.

The 1930s and the Great Depression did not spare the Ustrzyki Dolne refinery, and for economic reasons, the “Małopolska” Group, the refinery’s owner, decided to liquidate the company. Out of concern for the residents, the then city authorities, at the initiative of Mayor Dr. Roman Lenartowicz, established the “Pilak” woodworking company, which re-employed the workers. This, however, did not last long, as the Soviet administration reopened the refinery in 1939. After Ustrzyki Dolne returned to Poland in 1947, the refinery ceased operations due to the extensive devastation. Currently, the refinery grounds house the Bieszczady Cultural Heritage Centre.