Norwegian consortium wants parts of OMV

Specifically, a medium-sized Norwegian producer, private equity fund, and oil and gas trader has expressed interest in acquiring a majority stake in OMV (E&P) oil and gas production, according to a report “Delivery“.

The letter is not an offer, it is just a declaration of intent. This is signed by OMV Executive Vice President Johan Bellinger, who is said to have pulled the strings in the background. Pleininger is responsible for E&P on the board, and his contract will not be extended.

The promise to secure the gas supply

According to Courier, great promises are being made about the future of Austria’s gas supply. One could, as stated in the letter, “in return, secure Austria’s gas supply.” In addition, one offers strategic cooperation with the Austrian state, which has the right of first pre-emption for delivery of all future gas resources, which future OMV E&P explores and develops.

State holding company ÖBAG, which owns 31.5 percent of OMV, recently examined all possibilities of how to secure Austria’s gas supply independently from Russia in the future on behalf of ÖVP Finance Minister Magnus Brunner with the help of Chancellor McKinsey. The Oslo Letter is also part of this examination.

Brunner has been informed since the end of July

The consortium consists of four members, the newspaper quoted from the letter that was said to have been sent to Finance Minister Magnus Brunner (ÖVP) on July 25. The consortium is led by Norway’s director of oil and gas, Sapper Skogen. He is currently the CEO of a small Norwegian company called Mime with annual sales of around €35 ​​million in 2021.

Aker ASA + DNO, a holding company listed on the Oslo Stock Exchange, is also listed as a “big player”. According to the report, the also listed subsidiary Aker BP has six production assets in Norway with a total production of 650,000 barrels per day. This makes it slightly larger than OMV.

In addition, according to the letter, there are two “strong financial investors” with significant experience in E&P: Bluewater, a large international private equity fund, and Trafigura, one of the world’s largest commodity traders. This second largest independent oil and gas trader internationally is headquartered in Singapore. So the Norwegian part of the consortium is not very large.

Based on an initial pre-care analysis, the consortium estimates that 51 percent of OMV’s E&P division is worth between $5.5 and $7 billion. However, given the current situation, it is difficult to estimate the value.

Russia and Romania are excluded

The offer does not include OMV subsidiary Petrom in Romania, where there are large gas deposits in the Black Sea. Also not included is the OMV E&P business in Russia, which has been reduced by 1 billion euros this year and for which there is no demand.