Volintiru said Romgaz would act in consortium with OMV Petrom (SNP.RO) and a third, likely foreign, partner.
He said Romgaz is interested in a 20% stake in the project and the process would be finalized in September or October 2020. He added Romgaz would not pay additional dividends to the state this year.
The exploration activities in Neptun Deep were undertaken by OMV Petrom in partnership with ExxonMobil, which is looking to sell its 50% stake in the project after delaying investment decisions over the government’s back-and-forth on the offshore law.
OMV Petrom said earlier this year the current legislative environment did not provide the necessary prerequisites for a multi-billion investment decision on Neptun Deep. In the fall of 2018, OMV Petrom said it decided to postpone an investment decision on its Black Sea exploration project until 2019 because the Romanian government took too long to set the framework conditions for the offshore law.
The block is estimated to hold natural gas resources amounting to as much as 84 billion cubic meters.