Naftogaz has reportedly found large gas reserves in the Black Sea and is requesting a partnership with Petrom to develop the field

Ukraine’s Naftogaz, which discovered “substantial” offshore gas reserves in the Black Sea before Russia’s invasion, is in talks with Romania’s OMV Petrom to form a partnership over the field, three industry sources told Reuters.

The sources did not specify the amount of recoverable gas from the discovery, but one of them called it “one of the most promising gas fields in the Black Sea region,” where Romania and Turkey are already developing their own discovered fields.

The talks are at an early stage and development of the field will not begin until the end of the war, the sources said.

Still, the gas discovery could ultimately boost Europe’s energy security as it cuts ties with Russia, while also highlighting the Black Sea’s potential for new discoveries, Reuters reported.

Naftogaz and OMV Petrom did not immediately respond to requests for comment.

One of the sources said that seismic surveys have been carried out partly in the areas, which are close to Romanian offshore areas, and that 3D and 2D data are available.

The source also said that Ukraine is seeking business-to-business and intergovernmental talks to attract Western deep-sea gas extraction technology.

Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky said earlier this month, after meeting with Romanian President Nicușor Dan in Bucharest, that the two countries intend to jointly pursue projects to extract resources on the Black Sea continental shelf. He did not provide further details.

Ukraine was almost entirely self-sufficient in gas before the war, but was forced to sharply increase imports after Russian missile attacks damaged about half of its production facilities.

The Black Sea, crucial for the transport of grain, oil and petroleum products and host to offshore drilling projects, is shared by Bulgaria, Romania, Georgia, Turkey and Ukraine, as well as by Russia through Crimea.

In the four years since the war began, NATO members Bulgaria, Romania and Turkey have intercepted mines floating in the Black Sea on trade and energy routes.

OMV Petrom, majority-owned by the Austrian group OMV, is exploring in the Han Asparuh block off the coast of Bulgaria.

In Romania, the company is developing the Neptun Deep project in partnership with state producer Romgaz; it is due to start production in 2027, doubling the country’s gas output and turning it into a net exporter.

Petrom in the Ukrainian Black Sea – a story from the past decade

An international consortium led by Exxon Mobil and Royal Dutch Shell, including OMV Petrom and the Ukrainian state-owned company Nadra, won a tender for gas exploration in the offshore Skifska block, located east of the Crimean Peninsula, in 2012.

Petrom was in the project with a 15% stake. The Romanian company won the block in 2013 in a consortium with Exxon and Shell, ahead of the Russians from Lukoil. The consortium was to allocate over 700 million dollars for the drilling of two deep-sea wells in the Skifska block.

Even before the mass protests that led to the abandonment of power by former pro-Russian President Yanukovych, the consortium was supposed to sign the final agreement for the exploration and exploitation of the Skifska gas block in the Black Sea. The preliminary agreements were signed in 2013, and the final signature for Exxon to start drilling in the area had to be obtained just before the protests began.

However, in 2014, Exxon Mobil stopped the gas exploration project in the Ukrainian Black Sea area, in which Petrom was also involved, due to the political situation in the area.

The agreement with Ukraine was one of production sharing, different from Romanian legislation, in which the perimeter is concessioned and royalties are paid.