OMV increases stake in Norwegian Sea Gas Infrastructure project - Exploitation may start 2016

OMV signed an agreement on July 12th to acquire a 15% stake in the Aasta Hansteen field from ExxonMobil and increase its share by 6.15% in the Norwegian Sea Gas Infrastructure (NSGI) project.

The deal is subject to approval by the Ministry of Petroleum and Energy. The Aasta Hansteen development contains three significant gas discoveries in the Vøring Basin, in the Northern Norwegian Sea. The expected recoverable net volume is estimated at 40-60 million boe (barrels of oil equivalent) of gas and 0.8-1.0 million boe of condensate at the depth of approximately 1,300 m.

Statoil has been operating the field since 2006.

Co-venturers are OMV with a 15% stake and ConocoPhillips with a 10% stake. The field development is currently in the front-end engineering and design (FEED) phase. The final investment decision by the co-venturers is scheduled for Q4/12.

The acquisition will provide OMV with recoverable resources of 43 million boe from three discoveries. Additional exploration potential upside is identified, which may contribute at a later stage. Production is currently planned to start in Q4/16 and is currently estimated to provide OMV with 18,000 boe/d net in 2017.