OMV Takes UAE Ghasha Sour Gas Stake
Austria’s OMV has taken a 5% stake in the multi-billion-dollar Ghasha ultra-sour gas mega concession offshore Abu Dhabi in the United Arab Emirates (UAE).
It joins Eni with 25% and Wintershall with 10%, which entered the concession in November 2018, together with state producer, Adnoc, that holds the remaining 60% in the concession. It lasts 40 years and includes the Hail, Ghasha and Dalma major gas/condensate fields as well as other offshore fields including Nasr, SARB and Mubarraz.
OMV announced December 19 the signing of the deal by its CEO Rainer Seele and Adnoc CEO Ahmed Al Jaber (see banner photo courtesy of OMV, with Seele on left). Seele said the signature represents a further step in the implementation of OMV’s 'Strategy 2025' whereby it aims to expand its existing material Mideast position and shift its global E&P focus to gas.
Seele said February 2018 that he was seeking a decision on development of a specific sour gas project there, after reaching an earlier agreement to establish close ties with Adnoc. Already in 2016 OMV was awarded a four-year seismic, drilling and engineering work programme to explore and appraise oil and gas fields in the North-West Offshore Abu Dhabi area that includes the Ghasha and Hail blocks; this gave it confidence in the potential of the Ghasha mega project.
According to Adnoc’s planning, the project will start producing around the mid-2020s, with the fields expected to plateau at least 1.5bn ft3/d (15.5bn m3/yr), as well as over 120,000 b/d of liquids. The final investment decision for the first fields is planned to be completed next year.