- First steel cut for the jacket took place at the Saipem construction site at Arbatax, Italy
  - Neptun Deep is on track for first gas in 2027
  - Neptun Deep natural gas will contribute to Romania’s energy security

OMV Petrom, the largest integrated energy producer in Southeastern Europe, operator of the Neptun Deep project, announces the start of the construction works for the steel jacket, platform support structure. Its execution is part of the contract signed with Saipem and is carried out in the Saipem yard in Arbatax, Sardinia. The construction of the platform topsides began at the Saipem yard located in Karimun, Indonesia, in the first part of this year.

Christina Verchere, CEO OMV Petrom: “Together with our partners from Romgaz, we are very excited about the progress of the project, because this will contribute to the security of energy supply for all of us. Neptun Deep is a unique project for Romania, that mobilises investments of up to 4 billion euro, thus also contributing to the country’s economic welfare”.

Cristian Hubati, member of the OMV Petrom Executive Board, responsible for the Exploration and Production activities: “The construction of the Neptun Alpha production platform is progressing according to schedule, on two Saipem sites, located in Indonesia and Italy. We expect to install it in 2026, followed by hook up, commissioning and integration of the subsea production systems and pipelines. With these activities we are on track for first gas in 2027”.

Saipem is a global leading company in engineering and construction services for the energy sector. Under the contract for Neptun Deep, Saipem will execute Engineering, Procurement, Construction, Installation and Commissioning (EPCIC).

The jacket is the first part of the Neptun Alpha platform to be installed in the Black Sea. It will have a height of about 140 meters, a base of approximately 40 square meters and will weigh over 7,000 tons. The topsides will be installed on this structure.

The Neptun Alpha platform will be installed in water depths of ~100 meters and is part of the infrastructure required to produce Domino and Pelican South offshore natural gas fields. The productive infrastructure also includes 10 wells, 3 subsea production systems and associated flow lines, the main gas pipeline to shore (~160 km) and Tuzla natural gas metering station.

The Neptun Deep project is developed by OMV Petrom and Romgaz (through its subsidiary Romgaz Black Sea Limited), with each company having a 50% participating interest in the project. The investments necessary for the development phase are up to 4 billion euro.

The natural gas production was estimated at approximately 100 billion cubic meters, equivalent to ~30 times the current annual demand of ~4,300,000 households.

About OMV Petrom

OMV Petrom is the largest integrated energy producer in Southeastern Europe, with an annual Group hydrocarbon production of approximately 41 million boe in 2023. The Group has a refining capacity of 4.5 million tons annually and operates an 860 MW high-efficiency gas-fired power plant. The Group is present on the oil products retail market in Romania and neighbouring countries through approximately 780 filling stations under two brands – OMV and Petrom.

OMV Petrom is a company in which, as of end-2023, Romanian shareholders hold over 43% of the shares (of which the Romanian state, through the Ministry of Energy, holds 20.7%, and 22.5% are owned by pension funds in Romania, to which are added almost 500,000 individual investors and other Romanian entities). OMV Aktiengesellschaft, one of the largest listed industrial companies in Austria, holds a 51.2% stake in OMV Petrom, and the remaining 5.6% are held by other foreign investors. Of the total shares of OMV Petrom, 28.1% represents the free float on the Bucharest Stock Exchange.

OMV Petrom is one of the largest contributors to the state budget, with approximately 42 billion euro in taxes and dividends paid between 2005 and 2023. During the same period, the company invested approximately 18 billion euro.

Since 2007, OMV Petrom has included corporate responsibility principles into its business strategy. Between 2007 and 2023, the company has allocated around 160 million euro to develop communities in Romania, focusing on environmental protection, education, health, and local development.

On July 29th, 2020, OMV Petrom announced its support for the recommendations issued by the Task Force on Climate-related Financial Disclosures (TCFD) regarding risks and opportunities on climate change. OMV Petrom annually reports on the progress made in implementing these recommendations.

About Saipem

Saipem is a global leader in the engineering and construction of major projects for the energy and infrastructure sectors, both offshore and onshore. Saipem is “One Company” organized into business lines: Asset Based Services, Drilling, Energy Carriers, Offshore Wind, Sustainable Infrastructures, Robotics & Industrialized Solutions. The company has 6 fabrication yards and an offshore fleet of 21 construction vessels (of which 17 owned and 4 owned by third parties and managed by Saipem) and 15 drilling rigs, of which 9 owned. Always oriented towards technological innovation, the company’s purpose is “Engineering for a sustainable future”. As such Saipem is committed to supporting its clients on the energy transition pathway towards Net Zero, with increasingly digital means, technologies and processes geared for environmental sustainability.

Listed on the Milan Stock Exchange, it is present in more than 50 countries around the world and employs about 30,000 people of over 120 nationalities.