OMV Takes Over ExxonMobil's Stake in Aasta Hansteen Field
OMV has announced today that it has acquired ExxonMobil's 15 per cent stake in the Aasta Hansteen Field, increasing its current stake in three significant gas discoveries.
The agreement, which was signed yesterday, sees OMV take over the 15 per cent stake in the development of the Aasta Hansteen Field, previously called the Luva field, a field containing three "significant" gas discoveries in the Vøring Basin, in the Northern Norwegian Sea. Currently the Aasta Hansteen field is in the front end engineering and design (FEED) phase, with a final investment decision to be made on it by the fourth quarter of this year.
Expected recoverable net volume is estimated at 40 – 60 million barrels of oil equivalent (boe) of gas, OMV says, with 0.8 – 1.0 mn boe of condensate. Following the acquisition of ExxonMobil stake and once the Statoil-operated field comes into production, OMV says that it will take an estimated 18,000 boe per day net from the field by 2017.
Additionally, the company has also increased its stake in another project, it announced, upping its stake in the Norwegian Sea Gas Infrastructure (NGSI) project by 6.15 per cent. The company now holds a 7.9 per cent stake overall in the NGSI project.
The NGSI project, which is also operated by Statoil and which is also currently in the FEED stage, aims to connect the Aasta Hansteen field to the Nyhamna gas processing plant. The Nyhamna gas plant will also be expanded as part of the same project.
When completed, the NGSI project will connect the Aasta Hansteen field to these facilities via a 480 kilometre long pipeline. The pipeline may also connect to other discoveries, OMV says, such as the Linnorm and Zidane fields in which OMV has a 20 per cent stake.
The company says the acquisitions mark and reinforce its strong focus on Norwegian projects, a focus which was being rewarded.
"I´m glad to see that OMV’s strategy in Norway starts to bear fruit," Jaap Huijskes, OMV Executive Board Member responsible for Exploration and Production said today. "This is the second acquisition in the Northern Norwegian Sea within a year. We are well on track to establish Norway as a core country in our Exploration and Production portfolio."