• OMV acquires 30% interest in offshore license PL 301CS
• Position in E&P core region Northwestern Europe strengthened
• OMV with a total of six offshore licenses in Norway
OMV Aktiengesellschaft, the leading oil and gas group in Central Europe, strengthens its E&P position in the core region Northwestern Europe by acquiring a 30% interest in the exploration license PL 301CS in Norway from the Canadian company Talisman and the Danish company DONG. The new license is located in the Norwegian North Sea, approximately 300 km south-west of Stavanger and less than 30 km north-east of the producing UK field Jade, in which OMV holds an interest. The previous license holders, Talisman as operator and DONG, retain an interest of 42% and 28%, respectively. The agreement is subject to final approval of the Norwegian authorities. This acquisition is part of an expansion of OMV’s E&P portfolio which is in line with the Company’s growth strategy.
Helmut Langanger, OMV Executive Board member responsible for Exploration and Production stated: “We are well on track to build up a strong position in Norway and seek to further this by securing additional high quality exploration acreage in the future.”
Growth in Norway
OMV opened an office in Oslo in March 2006 and has moved to Stavanger in August 2007. Two licenses (PL 430, PL 439) were awarded to OMV early 2007 and a further two licenses (PL 449, PL 445) in June 2007. In February 2008, OMV was awarded the operated license PL 471 in the Norwegian Sea. License PL 301CS, which is located 80 km north of the giant Ekofisk oil field, is operated by Talisman (42%) with DONG (28%) and OMV (30%) as partners. All the licenses are located in prospective areas.
Balanced international E&P portfolio
OMV holds a balanced international E&P portfolio in 21 countries structured around six core regions, namely CEE, North Africa, Northwestern Europe, the Middle East, Australia/New Zealand and Russia/Caspian region. OMV’s daily production volume is approximately 321,000 boe/d, and the Company’s proved reserves at the end of 2007 were approximately 1.22 bn boe.
Background information:
OMV’s share in the acquired license PL 301CS/Norwegian North Sea:
OMV (Norge) AS 30%
Talisman Energy Norge AS (operator) 42%
DONG E&P Norge AS 28%
OMV in Norway
OMV (Norge) AS is a wholly owned subsidiary of OMV Exploration & Production GmbH, established in 2005 and headquartered in Stavanger. Following this acquisition, OMV (Norge) AS has interests in six licenses: two in the Barents Sea, two in the North Sea and two in the Norwegian Sea.
OMV Aktiengesellschaft
With Group sales of EUR 20.04 bn and a workforce of 33,665 employees in 2007, as well as market capitalization of approx. EUR 15 bn, OMV Aktiengesellschaft is Austria’s largest listed industrial company. As the leading oil and gas group in Central Europe, OMV is active in Refining and Marketing (R&M) in 13 countries. In Exploration and Production (E&P) OMV is active in 21 countries on five continents. OMV sells more than 13 bcm gas a year. OMV’s Austrian gas hub Baumgarten annually transports approximately 52 bcm of gas. OMV’s Central European Gas Hub is amongst the three largest hubs in Europe.
OMV is the largest oil and gas group in Central Europe, with oil and gas reserves of approx. 1.22 bn boe, daily production of around 321,000 boe and an annual refining capacity of 26.4 mn t. OMV has 2,538 filling stations in 13 countries. The market share of the group in the R&M business segment in the Danube Region is now 20%.
OMV further strengthened its leading position in the European growth belt through the acquisition of 40.75% of Petrol Ofisi, Turkey’s leading company in the retail and commercial business.
In June 2006, OMV has established the OMV Future Energy Fund, a wholly owned subsidiary to support projects in renewable energy with more than EUR 100 mn to initiate the change from a pure oil and gas group to an energy group with renewable energy in its portfolio.
OMV: Corporate Social Responsibility (CSR)
OMV is a member of the U.N. Global Compact and actively committed to the values enshrined in its Code of Conduct. These include a strong sense of responsibility towards the social and natural environment in economically weak regions. OMV works hard to address economic, environmental and social issues related to its operations. Its CSR activities are fully documented in biannual performance reports compiled according to Global Reporting Initiative guidelines. The “Global 100 Ranking” presented at this year’s World Economic Forum in Davos ranks OMV as one of the six most sustainable energy companies worldwide.
(OMV Press Release)
