Lukoil, the third investor interested in the Romanian Black Sea gas (after OMV Petrom and Black Sea Oil and Gas controlled by investment fund Carlyle), will start drilling operations this autumn after obtaining the necessary permits, Economica.net reported.

The activities will be carried out by a platform of the Italian company Saipem. Italian company Saipem, specializing in offshore drilling, announced that it won two contracts, worth a combined USD 160 million, for drilling: one in Abu Dhabi and one in the Black Sea, without indicating the customers. However, unofficial sources indicated Lukoil as being one of the customers.

According to the press release of the company, the Black Sea drilling is expected to start in the last quarter of the year and will be done with a semi-submersible platform, Scarabeo 9. The platform was contracted by the Russian company Lukoil, for the drilling campaign in its perimeter in the Romanian Black Sea area, the Trident perimeter, converging market sources said.

The Trident perimeter is 87.8% owned by Lukoil (the Russian company is the operator), while the rest is held by Romgaz, a company controlled by the Romanian state. According to seismic data, the surface of the reservoir can reach 39 square km, and the reserves to be confirmed by the assessment drill can exceed 30 billion cubic meters of natural gas, Romgaz said in 2015.

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editor@romania-insider.com