Romania's top oil and gas group OMV Petrom said on Wednesday that, together with local natural gas producer Romgaz, it will drill a deep water exploration well, named Anaconda-1, in the Black Sea, immediately after the completion of development drilling at the Neptun Deep offshore gas project. "Anaconda-1 will be drilled in approximately 1,500 meters water depth, 200 km away from Constanta, exploring a new prospect in the XIX Neptun Block. Total depth of the well is expected to reach almost 3,800 meters," Cristian Hubati, OMV Petrom board member responsible for exploration and production, said in a press release. "The total planned well cost is up to EUR 90 mn [$104.7 million]."
OMV Petrom and Romgaz have secured Transocean Barents, the rig that is currently drilling at Neptun Deep, to also drill the Anaconda-1 exploration well.
The two companies began drilling the first gas production well at the Neptun Deep project in March, in the Pelican South gas field. Per the current press release, drilling is ongoing to complete the four production wells in the Pelican South field, with the rig expected to move to the Domino field by the end of the year in order to drill the remaining six wells in deep water.
"OMV Petrom, together with Romgaz, continues the development of Neptun Deep, with estimated investments of up to EUR 4 bn. The project is on track and progressing well for first gas in 2027. Key activities are underway to unlock estimated recoverable resources of ~100 bcm," OMV Petrom said.
OMV Petrom has also started the process of extending its production licences with Romania's National Regulatory Authority in the Field of Mining, Petroleum and Geological Storage of Carbon Dioxide. The company is targeting a 15-year extension, until 2043. OMV Petrom and the Romanian state have agreed on a set of legal and contractual objectives important for future exploration and production investments in Romania, including the resolution of key outstanding issues, according to the press release.
Enabled by the recent extension of the onshore exploration license in seven blocks, OMV Petrom also intends to continue its onshore exploration activities to unlock further resources. In July, the company said it discovered a new natural gas reservoir in Spineni, close to the southern city of Craiova.
OMV Petrom reported a 3.433 billion lei ($784.4 million/674.5 million euro) net profit for the first nine months of 2025, down 13% from the prior-year period. Shares in the company traded 0.15% lower at 0.972 lei as at 1630 CET on Wednesday on the Bucharest Stock Exchange.
Romgaz shares traded 1.5% lower at 9.84 lei as at 1632 CET on Wednesday on the Bucharest bourse.
(SeeNews, December 11, 2025)
