Elmshorn, 19th of December 2019 – German rally driver Timo Gottschalk will be joining the German-Polish “ORLEN X-Raid Team”, by PKN ORLEN and star petrol stations, at the Dakar Rally next year. He will be joined at the start by Jakub Przygońsky in a rally car, quad driver Kamil Wiśniewsky, and motorcyclists Adam Tomiczek and Maciej Giemza. Together, the new team strives to conquer the demanding rally and snatch one of the podium positions.The 42nd Dakar Rally will start in Saudi Arabia for the first time on 5th of January 2020. The teams start their journey in Jeddah and will arrive at the finish line of the most demanding rally race in the world in Qiddiyah on 17th of January. It will already be the 20th time the ORLEN X-Raid Team participates in this race steeped in tradition. The drivers have to pass a distance of around 7,500 km, including 5,000 km of competitive special sections. These will above all see the navigation skills of drivers being put to the test in the upcoming rally.
Timo Gottschalk, a Dakar Rally regular since 2007, turned his hobby into a career in 1995, becoming a professional rally navigator. “I won the Dakar in 2011 and my goal is to repeat this success. With my team partner Jakub Przygońsky, I have a very experienced driver by my side, and together we will work hard to be at the top of the rally. Working with the ORLEN X-Raid team is fun and I am really looking forward to the new challenges,” says Timo Gottschalk. The entire team is very well prepared for the upcoming rally in Dakar and is hoping for a long rally crowned with a much-coveted podium place.
“We are expanding our engagement in motorsport, the best example of which is our entry into Formula 1. We complement the activities of the ORLEN team in rally competitions headed by Dakar, with whom we have been connected for many years. Our presence in the most challenging rally in the world is an important part of our marketing strategy aimed at raising the awareness of the ORLEN brand on a global scale, which is why the Benzina and star brands will also be added to our team,” says Anna Ziobroń, Sports Marketing, Sponsorship and Events Office Director at PKN ORLEN.
It’s not a coincidence that PKN ORLEN and star petrol stations have joined forces at the Dakar Rally. Their participation forms part of a large image campaign of PKN ORLEN and German subsidiary ORLEN Deutschland, with its star petrol station brand. The campaign marks the kick-off of an international brand strategy of PKN ORLEN and furthermore reinforces the brand awareness of the ORLEN umbrella brand. In Germany, the petrol station
brands ORLEN and star will be co-branded in future; in the Czech Republic, there will be a co-branding of the ORLEN and Benzina brand. This will above all become apparent at the petrol pumps, with the logos of both brands appearing next to each other.
191219_press release_star petrol stations__Rallye_Dakar.pdfstar – a strong brand from ORLEN Deutschland GmbH
star is the petrol station brand of ORLEN Deutschland GmbH, which has been on the German market since 2003 and is operating more than 580 petrol stations. The company, which is based in Elmshorn near Hamburg, is part of the Polish oil and energy group PKN ORLEN S.A., which is the largest enterprise in Central Eastern Europe (CEE), with an annual turnover of EUR 25 billion in 2018.
PKN ORLEN is a leading player on the fuel and energy market and is listed in prestigious global rankings such as Fortune Global 500, Platts TOP250 and Thompson Reuters TOP100.
The Group owns state-of-the-art integrated infrastructure, capable of producing more than 35 million
tonnes of various crude oil types per annum and of marketing its products through the CEE-region’s
largest network of more than 2,800 modern petrol stations. PKN ORLEN’s offering includes over 50
top-quality petrochemical and refining products sold in more than 90 countries around the world on 6
continents. 60 percent of the company's revenues are generated outside the country.
For the last few years, ORLEN has been established as the most valuable brand in Poland. PKN
ORLEN is also the only company in the region that has been awarded the prestigious title of ‘The Most
Ethical Company’ for the sixth time in a row by the American Ethisphere Institute.
Contact:
ORLEN Deutschland GmbH
Aneta Lewandowska
Press office:
Telephone: +49 (0)40-2022888616
pressestelle.orlen@serviceplan.com