Production at the 4539 Totea well is currently around 430,000 cubic meters of gas and 58 tons of condensate per day, equal to approximately 3% of Petrom’s daily gas output.
“Totea is a very important project for us and for Romania given the field’s potential. The appraisal might confirm the largest onshore gas discovery in Romania in the past six years,” said Johann Pleininger, member of Petrom Executive Board, responsible for Exploration and Production.
The Totea well was drilled in the first half of 2011, at a depth of 3,600 meters, following a 3D seismic exploration program.
Petrom plans to drill two appraisal wells that will provide additional data on the accumulation size. Based on the results obtained, more development drillings will be taken into consideration, the company said.
Experimental production is estimated to start in December 2011 and will last for approximately 6-12 months.
Petrom is Romania’s largest vertically integrated oil company. Austrian OMV owns 51% of the company’s shares, while Romanian Economy Ministry and regional investment fund Fondul Proprietatea hold 20.64% and 20.11% in Petrom, respectively. The reminder 8.24% stake is traded on the Bucharest bourse.
Tuesday, Petrom’s shares closed down 2.31% at RON0.3 a share.