Ukrainian national energy corporation Naftogaz - a unit that discovered significant gas reserves in the Black Sea before the conflict with Russia broke out - is negotiating with Romanian company OMV Petrom to establish a partnership to exploit this gas field.
Three sources did not disclose the potential gas reserves, but one source said this is "one of the most promising gas fields in the Black Sea region", where Romania and Turkey are also developing their own projects.
The negotiation is still in the initial stage and the development of this gas field will not be able to begin before the conflict ends, according to 3 sources.
However, this discovery may contribute to strengthening energy security for Europe in the context of the region reducing dependence on supplies from Russia, while highlighting the great potential of the Black Sea for the discovery of more oil and gas fields.
According to a source, seismic surveys have been partially conducted in the mine area, located near Romanian offshore blocks, with 2D and 3D data available.
Ukraine is promoting both business-to-business (B2B) and government-to-government cooperation to attract deep-water gas exploitation technology from the West.
After meeting with Romanian President Nicusor Dan in Bucharest earlier this month, Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky said that the two countries plan to jointly implement resource exploitation projects on the Black Sea continental shelf, but did not elaborate.
Before the conflict broke out, Ukraine was almost completely self-sufficient in gas. However, Russian missile attacks destroyed about half of the production facilities, forcing the country to sharply increase imports.
The Black Sea is an important area for the transportation of grain, oil and energy products, and also a place to deploy many offshore drilling projects.
The coastal countries of the Black Sea are Bulgaria, Romania, Georgia, Turkey, Ukraine and Russia (through Crimea).
During the 4-year war, NATO members including Bulgaria, Romania and Turkey have repeatedly detected and neutralized floating naval mines on maritime and energy routes in this area.
OMV Petrom, mainly invested by Austrian OMV Group, is conducting explorations at the Han Asparuh block off Bulgaria.
In Romania, OMV Petrom is developing the Neptun Deep project with state-owned gas company Romgaz. The project is expected to start operating in 2027, helping Romania double its gas production and become a net exporter.
