The gas exploration in the Black Sea carried by OMV Petrom and ExxonMobil is one of the few projects that go well in a context where the price of the oil barrel is USD 30-40, said former energy minister Razvan Nicolescu, now an energy expert at Deloitte.

The two companies have invested over EUR 1 billion in this project, according to Deloitte estimates.

"Unfortunately, we don’t know if the gas found there can be exploited,” Nicolescu added, cited by local Agerpres.

He said that the first step towards commercial exploitation has been made, namely the signing of an agreement between Transgaz and the oil companies OMV Petrom and Exxon for building a pipeline that will bring the gas from the Black Sea to Romania’s territory.

The second important step is the market’s transparency, according to the former minister. Starting 2014, gas producers are obliged to trade certain amounts of gas on the bourse.

(Romania-insider.com)