Together with the Austrian oil and gas company OMV, the Romanians will obtain gas from a field discovered in the Black Sea in 2012, which could largely supply the whole of Southeast Europe in 2027.
Investments in this project can reach four billion euros. The Romanian company “OMV Petrom” controlled by the Austrian OMV will take over half, the other half will be invested by the company “Romgaz”, where 70% is owned by the Romanian state.
The Romanian government and the pension fund also own more than 42% of the shares in OMV Petrom, while the Austrian concern owns 51%. For a long time, Romania delayed such large investments, but Russia’s war against Ukraine made them change their minds.
The deposit named “Neptune Deep” is located 160 kilometers from the coast at a depth of 100 to 1000 meters. In the next three to four years, a drilling platform must be built, ten wells must be created under water, three underwater pipeline systems must be installed, and the main pipeline must be built to the shore in the Tuzla city district, where the infrastructure must also be installed.
After that, it will be possible to use the deposit, the volume of which is estimated at 100 billion cubic meters, for about ten years. This far exceeds Romania’s own needs and will allow surrounding countries to get rid of Gazprom’s dependence, especially in the Balkans.
Romania could also supply gas to Austria. Currently, OMV is still buying it from Russia, receiving it in transit through war-torn Ukraine, but the Austrian government is calling for it to get off the “Kremlin’s needle”. It is true that mining in Romania will only start in 2027, but OMV has signed long-term contracts with Gazprom until 2040.
Austria still has the option to buy liquefied gas, which is delivered to the new terminals in Germany. There are possibilities of delivery via pipelines through Germany and the Czech Republic, which were once built as a continuation of the Russian Nord Stream.
2023-07-03 02:48:00
#Romania #pump #gas #Europe
