Did you know that historically Romania is the first oil producer registered in the international statistics and the first refinery developer? Needless to say- as far as fun facts go, Bucharest was the first city ever illuminated with kerosene.
So, what is the current status of the rich-in-hydrocarbons Romania. Thankfully Romania remains a prolific oil and gas producer in Central and Eastern Europe. Bordering the Black Sea, one of the richest wells for oil and gas production, Romania manages to cover its domestic energy consumption needs; as far as statistics go, Romania gas supply ratings reach to an incredible 80%, whilst oil supply up to 40%. Now, who are the lucky IOCs indulging in the vast Black Sea hydrocarbon resources?
Let’s take it from the top:
- Starting from 2020-2021, ExxonMobil and OMV Petrom will extract 6 billion cubic meters of gas annually from the Neptun block in the Black Sea and Romania will produce a total of 18-20 billion cubic meters of gas if all the projects are developed in the Black Sea, Sorin Gal, Director General with the National Agency for Mineral Resources (ANRM) has said.
- Another major regional player, state holding company Romgaz, joining forces with Lukoil and PanAtlantic, have made yet another big discovery in 2015, with the EX 30 Trident offshore gas field and in 2016 with EX 29 est Rapsodia.
- Other independent companies are currently exploring in Romania: Aramco, Hunt Oil and Stratum Energy are among the IOCs that have already invested in Romania.
- Major oil and service providers are there to support these ventures, including our Sponsor, Globema, Weatherford, GE Oil & Gas, Cameron Drilling and Production Systems, Lufkin, Halliburton and others.
New projects and discoveries
With such a good investment environment and wealth of hydrocarbons, there has been a new wave of projects and discoveries since last year’s Balkans Petroleum:
- Transgaz plans to invest €360 million to construct a pipeline between Podișor and Tuzla. The pipeline will span 308 km and will establish a missing connection between the Black Sea natural gas sources and the BRUA pipeline which is designed to connect Romanian Black Sea resources to Austria, Bulgaria, and Hungary. Transgaz has already completed surveys and assessments, and received all necessary permits for the construction. The final decision for the project will be taken before the end of this year.
- Serinus Energy has encountered gas bearing zones at the Moftinu 1003, its new exploration well
So, are the Romanian fields still a reduced-risk investment and full of untapped potential? The simple answer is of course; It’s almost certain that that Romania is ready to put another golden medal in its “oil and gas history” collection.
Such questions will be thoroughly answered at the “Romania” oil and gas section during the 6th Balkans Petroleum by IN-VR taking place in JW Marriott Grand Hotel, Bucharest Romania, 16th and 17th October. Our distinguished speakers, including the Minister of Energy of Romania, Mr. Anton Anton, will join in to share their thoughts and knowledge upon these facts.
We can't wait for the crucial-to-the-region Balkans Petroleum summit, 16 and 17 October. 2018.